Systems and methods for assessing vascular health

• US 6,723,051 B2
• Filed: 10/01/2001
• Issued: 04/20/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: New Health Sciences, Inc.
• Original Assignee: New Health Sciences, Inc.
• Inventors: Davidson, John, Crutchfield, Kevin, Fitall, Simon, Mozayeni, Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Lateef, Marvin M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jain, Ruby
• Application Number:
  US09/966,368
• Publication Number:
  US 20020049384A1
• Time in Patent Office: 932 Days
• Field of Search: 600/454, 600/455, 600/453, 600/457, 600/456, 600/504-506, 600/513
• US Class Current: 600/454
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02007 Evaluating blood vessel condition, e.g. elasticity, compliance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4076 Diagnosing or monitoring particular conditions of the nervous system A61B5/4821, A61B5/4824 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7264 Classification of physiological signals or data, e.g. using neural networks, statistical classifiers, expert systems or fuzzy systems neural networks per se G06N3/00; expert systems per se G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/06 Measuring blood flow measuring volume flow in general G01F, e.g. G01F1/66, G01F1/72; measuring speed of fluids in general G01P5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/56 Details of data transmission or power supply
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8915 using a transducer array
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8979 Combined Doppler and pulse-echo imaging systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52036 using analysis of echo signal for target characterisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/30 for calculating health indices; for individual health risk assessment
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/60 relating to pathologies

Abstract

The present invention relates generally to systems and methods for assessing blood flow in blood vessels, for assessing vascular health, for conducting clinical trials, for screening therapeutic interventions for adverse effects, and for assessing the effects of risk factors, therapies and substances, including therapeutic substances, on blood vessels, especially cerebral blood vessels, all achieved by measuring various parameters of blood flow in one or more vessels and analyzing the results in a defined manner. The relevant parameters of blood flow include mean flow velocity, systolic acceleration, and pulsatility index. By measuring and analyzing these parameters, one can ascertain the vascular health of a particular vessel, multiple vessels and an individual. Such measurements can also determine whether a substance has an effect, either deleterious or advantageous, on vascular health. The present invention further provides an expert system for achieving the above.

Claims

1. A method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal, the method of assessing vascular health comprising the steps of:

obtaining information concerning blood flow within a vessel;

calculating at least two of a mean flow velocity value, a systolic acceleration value, and a pulsatility index value, for the vessel;

correlating at least two of the calculated mean flow velocity value, the calculated systolic acceleration value, and the calculated pulsatility index value; and

assessing the subject'"'"'s vascular health based in part on the correlated values.

2. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

plotting the pulsatility index value,

plotting the systolic acceleration value, and

plotting the mean flow velocity value,

wherein the pulsatility index value, the systolic acceleration value, and the mean flow velocity value produce a first characteristic value for the vessel.

3. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

obtaining information concerning an additional variable;

transforming the information into a value, and

combining the value with the pulsatility index value, the systolic acceleration value, and

the mean flow velocity value,

wherein the combined values produce a second characteristic value for the vessel.

4. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 2, further comprising the step of:

comparing the first characteristic value for the vessel to other first characteristic values obtained from measurements of similar vessels in other humans or animals.

5. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 3, further comprising the step of:

comparing the second characteristic value for the vessel to second characteristic values obtained from measurements of similar vessels in other humans or animals.

6. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1 wherein the vessel is an artery.

7. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 6 wherein the artery supplies a central nervous system.

8. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 6 wherein the artery is at least vessel one selected from the group consisting of common carotid, internal carotid, external carotid, middle cerebral, anterior cerebral, posterior cerebral, anterior communicating, posterior communicating, vertebral, basilar, ophthalmic artery, and branches thereof.

9. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1 wherein the vessel is an intracranial vessel.

10. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

using ultrasound energy to collect blood flow information, and

using the blood flow information in performing the calculations.

11. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 10, further comprising the step of using a Doppler probe to collect the blood flow information.

12. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1 wherein the human or the animal has an apparent or suspected vascular disease or a condition that affects vascular function.

13. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 12 wherein the vascular disease or condition is at least one selected from the group consisting of stroke risk, stroke, sleep apnea, and hydrocephalus.

14. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 9 wherein the human or animal has an apparent or suspected vascular disease or condition that affects vascular function.

15. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 14 wherein the vascular disease or condition is at least one selected from the group of stroke risk, stroke, sleep apnea and hydrocephalus.

16. The method of assessing vascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 1 wherein the human or the animal is analyzed at a time of normal and at a time of abnormal health.

33. The method according to claim 1 wherein values are calculated with respect to at least three blood vessels in one subject.

17. A method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal, the method of assessing cerebrovascular health comprising the steps of:

obtaining information concerning blood flow within a blood vessel;

calculating at least two of a mean flow velocity value, a systolic acceleration value, and a pulsatility index value, for the vessel;

inserting at least two of the calculated mean flow velocity value, the calculated systolic acceleration value, and the calculated pulsatility index value into a common schema; and

assessing a subject'"'"'s vascular health based in part on the common schema.

18. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17, wherein the schema is selected from the group of a graph, a plot, a spreadsheet, a diagram and a database.

19. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 18, further comprising the step of plotting the pulsatility index value, the systolic acceleration value, and the mean flow velocity value for the vessel in a 3-dimensional space, wherein the plot of the pulsatility index value, the systolic acceleration value, and the mean flow velocity value in 3-dimensional space produces a first characteristic value for the vessel.

20. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 19, further comprising the step of obtaining information concerning at least one other additional variable, transforming the information into a value, and plotting the value in n-dimensional space together with the pulsatility index value, the systolic acceleration value, and the mean flow velocity value to produce a second characteristic value for the vessel.

21. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 19 wherein the first characteristic value for the vessel is compared to other first characteristic values obtained from measurements collected from similar vessels from other humans or animals.

22. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 20 wherein the second characteristic value for the vessel is compared to second characteristic values obtained from measurements collected from similar vessels in other humans or animals.

23. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein the vessel is an artery.

24. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 23 wherein the artery supplies a central nervous system.

25. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 23 wherein the artery is at least one vessel selected from the group consisting of common carotid, internal carotid, external carotid, middle cerebral, anterior cerebral, posterior cerebral, anterior communicating, posterior communicating, vertebral, basilar, ophthalmic artery, and branches thereof.

26. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein the vessel is an intracranial vessel.

27. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein values are calculated with respect to multiple intracranial vessels in one subject.

28. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein ultrasound energy is used to collect the information concerning blood flow.

29. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 28 wherein a Doppler probe is used.

30. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein the human or the animal has an apparent or suspected vascular disease or a condition that affects vascular function.

31. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 30 wherein the vascular disease or condition is at least one selected from the group consisting of stroke risk, stroke, sleep apnea and hydrocephalus.

32. The method of assessing cerebrovascular health in a human or an animal according to claim 17 wherein the human or the animal is analyzed at a time of normal and a time of abnormal health.

34. The method according to claim 17 wherein values are calculated with respect to at least three blood vessels in one subject.