Therapeutic unit and therapeutic system supporting a follow-up examination

• US 8,731,680 B2
• Filed: 04/16/2008
• Issued: 05/20/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/21/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Biotronik SE & Company KG
• Original Assignee: Biotronik VI Patent AG (Biotronik SE & Company KG)
• Inventors: Reinke, Joachim, Bungartz, Joern, Kukla, Volker, Rau, Tobias
• Primary Examiner(s): Koharski, Christopher D
• Assistant Examiner(s): So, Elizabeth K
• Application Number:
  US12/104,385
• Publication Number:
  US 20080262572A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,225 Days
• US Class Current: 607/60
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/00 Electrotherapy; Circuits therefor A61N2/00 takes precedence; irradiation apparatus A61N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37276 characterised by means for reducing power consumption during telemetry
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37282 characterised by communication with experts in remote locations using a network
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/125 involving control of end-device applications over a network
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/62 Establishing a time schedule for servicing the requests

Abstract

Therapeutic system with implantable therapeutic unit (ITU) comprising control unit (CU), memory, telemetry unit connected (in)directly to CU for wireless bidirectional transmission of data to/from external device (ED) and detection unit for detecting physiological patient data or operational data. CU triggers outgoing data transmission (DT) from ITU to ED based on preselected internal events and establishes standby mode for reception on part of telemetry unit for receiving beginning (header) of incoming DT from ED to therapeutic unit exclusively within preselected response time window after DT from ITU to ED. System designed to add to incoming DT follow-up signaling data which signals an imminent follow-up examination, whereby CU also prompts sensor unit at preselected time point in response to receipt of follow-up signaling data to detect preselected physiological data required for follow-up examination or to detect operational data of therapeutic and store in memory and transmit with subsequent outgoing DT to ED.

Claims

1. A therapeutic system comprising:

an implantable therapeutic unit, comprising

a control unit;

a memory connected to the control unit;

a telemetry unit connected at least indirectly to the control unit for wireless bidirectional transmission of data to and from an external device;

a detection unit configured to detect physiological data of a patient or operational data of said implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein the control unit is configured to trigger an outgoing data transmission from the implantable therapeutic unit to the external device based on preselected therapeutic-device-internal events and establish a standby mode for reception on part of the telemetry unit to receive a beginning portion or header of an incoming data transmission from the external device to the implantable therapeutic unit within a preselected response time window after the outgoing data transmission from the implantable therapeutic unit to the external device or within a reception time window at times preset in the implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein said incoming data transmission comprises an acknowledgement configured to signal to the implanted therapeutic unit that the outgoing data transmission was successful such that a prompt for a renewed outgoing data transmission containing the data is not required;

wherein said incoming data transmission further comprises follow-up signaling data that signals a coming or future time for a follow-up examination;

wherein the control unit is also configured to prompt a sensor unit at a preselected point in time in response to receipt of the follow-up signaling data to detect detected data at said future time comprising preselected required physiological data or operational data of the implantable therapeutic unit for a follow-up examination and to store detected data in the memory at said future time without storing said detected data in the memory at time of programming and transmit the detected data together with a subsequent outgoing data transmission to the external device;

wherein the implantable therapeutic unit has a time and date transducer connected to the control unit, and wherein the control unit is configured in response to receipt of follow-up signaling data, to extract from the follow-up data a date of a coming or future follow-up examination and to determine a point in time for a preliminary examination to occur a preselected amount of time before the extracted date for the coming follow-up examination, and wherein said control unit is configured to prompt the sensor unit at the point in time of the preliminary examination as the preselected point in time to detect the preselected required physiological data or operational data for the coming or future follow-up examination.

2. The therapeutic system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a service center configured to communicate bidirectionally with the external device for data communication with the implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein said service center has a date memory for storing a date for a coming follow-up examination;

wherein said service center is configured to determine the point in time for the preliminary examination which occurs a preselected amount of time before the date for the coming or future follow-up examination;

wherein said service center is configured to prompt the external device to generate an incoming message directed from the external device to the implantable therapeutic unit after receipt of an outgoing message originating from the implantable therapeutic unit after the point in time of the preliminary examination, said incoming message comprising the follow-up signaling data and wherein said incoming message is transmitted to the implantable therapeutic unit within the preselected response time window.

3. The therapeutic system according to claim 2, wherein the service center is designed to prompt the external device to transmit said incoming message within the preselected response time window to the implantable therapeutic unit when a preselected resting period of time has elapsed since a prior transmission of signaling data to the implantable therapeutic unit.

4. The therapeutic system according to claim 2, wherein the service center comprises, at least indirectly, an input unit for entering the date of an upcoming follow-up examination.

5. The therapeutic system according to claim 1, wherein the implantable therapeutic unit is designed to prompt the sensor unit to detect the preselected required physiological data or operational data of the implantable therapeutic unit for the follow-up examination and to store the detected data in the memory and to transmit the detected data with a subsequent outgoing data transmission to the external device only when more than a preselected dormant time has elapsed since a prior detection or transmission of data.

6. The therapeutic system according to claim 1, wherein the implantable therapeutic unit further comprises a battery, and is further configured to cease from detecting data required for the follow-up examination at the point in time intended by the follow-up signaling data if the battery of the implantable therapeutic unit has been drained below a preselected limit at this point in time.

7. The therapeutic system according to claim 1, wherein said therapeutic unit is further configured to automatically trigger the detection of data needed for a follow-up examination at preselected intervals of time, wherein said preselected intervals of time amount to a few months.

8. A therapeutic system comprising:

an implantable therapeutic unit, comprising

a control unit;

a memory connected to the control unit;

a telemetry unit connected at least indirectly to the control unit for wireless bidirectional transmission of data to and from an external device;

a detection unit configured to detect physiological data of a patient or operational data of said implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein the control unit is configured to trigger an outgoing data transmission from the implantable therapeutic unit to the external device based on preselected events internal to the implantable therapeutic unit and establish a standby mode for reception on part of the telemetry unit to receive a beginning portion or header of an incoming data transmission from the external device to the implantable therapeutic unit within a preselected response time window after the outgoing data transmission from the implantable therapeutic unit to the external device or within a reception time window at times preset in the implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein said incoming data transmission comprises an acknowledgement configured to signal to the implanted therapeutic unit that the outgoing data transmission was successful such that a prompt for a renewed outgoing data transmission containing the data is not required;

wherein said incoming data transmission further comprises follow-up signaling data that signals a coming future time for a follow-up examination;

wherein the control unit is also configured to prompt a sensor unit at a preselected point in time to detect detected data comprising preselected required physiological data for a follow-up examination or operational data of the implantable therapeutic unit and to store detected data in the memory in response to the receipt of an incoming data transmission containing follow-up signaling data, and transmit the detected data to the external device together with a subsequent outgoing data transmission;

a service center configured to communicate bidirectionally with the external device for data communication with the implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein said service center is configured to store a point in time for a preliminary examination which occurs a preselected amount of time before the date for the coming follow-up examination;

wherein said service center is configured to prompt the external device to generate an incoming message directed from the external device to the implantable therapeutic unit after receipt of an outgoing message originating from the implantable therapeutic unit after the point in time of the preliminary examination, said incoming message comprising the follow-up signaling data and wherein said incoming message is transmitted to the implantable therapeutic unit within the preselected response time window;

wherein the service center is configured to prompt the external device to transmit said incoming message within the preselected response time window to the implantable therapeutic unit when a preselected resting period of time has elapsed since a prior transmission of signaling data to the implantable therapeutic unit;

wherein the implantable therapeutic unit has a time and date transducer connected to the control unit, and wherein the control unit is configured in response to receipt of follow-up signaling data, to extract from the follow-up data a date of a coming or future follow-up examination and to determine a point in time for a preliminary examination to occur a preselected amount of time before the extracted date for the coming follow-up examination, and wherein said control unit is configured to prompt the sensor unit at the point in time of the preliminary examination as the preselected point in time to detect the preselected required physiological data or operational data for the coming or future follow-up examination; and

wherein the implantable therapeutic unit is designed to prompt the sensor unit to detect the preselected required physiological data or operational data of the implantable therapeutic unit for the follow-up examination and to store the detected data in the memory and to transmit the detected data with a subsequent outgoing data transmission to the external device only when more than a preselected dormant time has elapsed since a prior detection or transmission of data.

9. The therapeutic system according to claim 8, wherein the implantable therapeutic unit further comprises a battery, and is further configured to cease from detecting data required for the follow-up examination at the point in time intended by the follow-up signaling data if the battery of the implantable therapeutic unit has been drained below a preselected limit at this point in time.

10. The therapeutic system according to claim 8, wherein said therapeutic unit is further configured to automatically trigger the detection of data needed for a follow-up examination at preselected intervals of time, wherein said preselected intervals of time amount to a few months.