Systems for detecting a condition

• US 9,681,820 B2
• Filed: 10/19/2011
• Issued: 06/20/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Highland Instruments, Inc.,
• Original Assignee: Highland Instruments, Inc.,
• Inventors: Wagner, Timothy Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Seth, Manav
• Application Number:
  US13/880,317
• Publication Number:
  US 20130223709A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,071 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0036 including treatment, e.g., using an implantable medical device, ablating, ventilating
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0051 by applying vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/031 Intracranial pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/053 Measuring electrical impedance or conductance of a portion of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0531 Measuring skin impedance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4064 Evaluating the brain A61B5/031, A61B5/369, A61B5/14553 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4884 inducing physiological or psychological stress, e.g. applications for stress testing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6814 Head
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7282 Event detection, e.g. detecting unique waveforms indicative of a medical condition A61B5/4094, A61B5/4818, A61B5/349, A61B5/0823 take precedence

Abstract

The invention generally relates to systems for measuring impedance change in order to detect a condition. In certain aspects, the invention provides systems for monitoring tissue and detecting a condition that include at least one energy source, a transduction unit, and a pattern recognition component that compares impedance signatures recorded from the transduction unit with a database of impedance signatures associated with medical conditions.

Claims

1. A system for monitoring tissue and detecting a condition, the system comprising:

at least one energy source configured to output to a tissue an energy field comprising a fixed energy component at a pre-determined frequency;

a transduction unit configured to;

receive a signal from the tissue over multiple time points;

generate a first impedance value at a first time point by determining a correlation at the first time point between the output of the fixed energy component at the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the first time point;

generate a second impedance value at a second time point by determining a correlation at the second time point between the output of the fixed energy component at the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the second time point; and

generate an impedance signature that is representative of a change in the first impedance value at the first time point and the second impedance value at the second time point; and

a pattern recognition component that compares the impedance signature generated by the transduction unit with a database of one or more impedance signatures of a traumatic brain injury.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the energy source is an electric source that produces an electric field.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the electric field is pulsed.

4. The system according to claim 2, wherein the electric field is time varying.

5. The system according to claim 2, wherein the electric field is pulsed a plurality of time, and each pulse may be for a different length of time.

6. The system according to claim 2, wherein the electric field is time invariant.

7. The system according to claim 2, wherein the electric source is at least one electrode.

8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the energy source and the transduction unit are integrated with each other.

9. The system according to claim 7, wherein the electrode may be a component of a second system selected from the group consisting of:

EEG, EKG, EOG, ERG, and ENG.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system is integrated with an imaging system.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein the energy source is selected from the group consisting of:

electromagnetic, chemical, optical, thermal, mechanical, and a combination thereof.

12. The system according to claim 11, wherein the mechanical field is generated by an ultrasound device.

13. A system for monitoring tissue and detecting a condition, the system comprising:

an electric source that produces an electric field at a fixed current a pre-determined frequency;

an electrical transduction unit configured to;

receive a signal from the tissue over multiple time points;

generate a first impedance value at a first time point by determining a correlation at the first time point between the electric field at the fixed current the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the first time point;

generate a second impedance value at a second time point by determining a correlation at the second time point between the electric field at the fixed current the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the second time point; and

generate an impedance signature that is representative of a change in the first impedance value at the first time point and the second impedance value at the second time point; and

;

a pattern recognition component that compares the impedance signature generated by the transduction unit with a database of one or more impedance signatures of a traumatic brain injury; and

a helmet that houses at least the electric source or transduction unit.

14. The system according to claim 13, wherein the electrical transduction unit measures the electrical impedance of the tissue.

15. The system according to claim 13, wherein the system is integrated with a second system selected from the group consisting of:

EEG, EKG, EOG, ERG, and ENG.

16. A system for monitoring tissue and detecting a condition, the system comprising:

a noninvasive transcranial stimulator configured to output to a tissue an energy field comprising a fixed energy component at a pre-determined frequency;

a transduction unit configured to;

receive a signal from the tissue over multiple time points;

generate a first impedance value at a first time point by determining a correlation at the first time point between the output of the fixed energy component at the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the first time point;

generate a second impedance value at a second time point by determining a correlation at the second time point between the output of the fixed energy component at the pre-determined frequency and the received signal from the tissue at the second time point; and

generate an impedance signature that is representative of a change in the first impedance value at the first time point and the second impedance value at the second time point; and

a pattern recognition component that compares the impedance signature generated by the transduction unit with a database of one or more impedance signatures of a traumatic brain injury.