Methods for physiological monitoring training, exercise and regulation

• US 20060078183A1
• Filed: 11/08/2005
• Published: 04/13/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Decharms R. Chrisopher
• Original Assignee: Decharms R. Chrisopher
• Inventors: deCharms, R. Chrisopher
• Granted Patent: US 7,567,693 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/16 Devices for psychotechnics using teaching or educational appliances G09B1/00 - G09B7/00; Testing reaction times ; Devices for evaluating the psychological state
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4094 Diagnosing or monitoring seizure diseases, e.g. epilepsy
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7285 for synchronising or triggering a physiological measurement or image acquisition with a physiological event or waveform, e.g. an ECG signal A61B6/5205, A61B6/541, A61B8/5207, A61B8/543 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7425 Displaying combinations of multiple images regardless of image source, e.g. displaying a reference anatomical image with a live image geometric transforms for image registration G06T3/14; enhancement using image fusion G06T5/50; algorithms for registration of images G06T7/30
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/743 Displaying an image simultaneously with additional graphical information, e.g. symbols, charts, function plots
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/541 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0808 for diagnosis of the brain
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/543 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal

Abstract

Computer executable software and device for guiding brain activity training comprising: logic which takes data corresponding to activity measurements of one or more internal voxels of a brain and determines one or more members of the group consisting of: a) what next stimulus to communicate to the subject, b) what next behavior to instruct the subject to perform, c) when a subject is to be exposed to a next stimulus, d) when the subject is to perform a next behavior, e) one or more activity metrics computed from the measured activity, f) a spatial pattern computed from the measured activity, g) a location of a region of interest computed from the measured activity, h) performance targets that a subject is to achieve computed from the measured activity, i) a performance measure of a subject'"'"'s success computed from the measured activity, j) a subject'"'"'s position relative to an activity measurement instrument; and logic for communicating information based on the determinations to the subject in substantially real time relative to when the activity is measured.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

taking brain activity measurements from one or more regions internal to a brain of a subject;

using a computer executable logic for determining information based upon said brain activity measurements; and

using a computer executable logic for communicating said information to said subject in substantially real time.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein said one or more regions internal to the brain comprise one or more voxels.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said one or more regions internal to the brain comprise regions of interest.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said taking brain activity measurements are made using an fMRI apparatus.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising pre-training said subject.

6. The method of claim 1 further training said subject to modulate brain activity without taking brain activity measurements.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein said taking brain activity measurements are made using an apparatus capable of taking measurements from one or more internal voxels without substantial contamination of the measurements by activity from regions intervening between the internal voxels being measured and where the measurement apparatus collects the data.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein said information comprises an activity metric.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said activity measurements are recorded.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein the region of interest has a primary function of releasing a neuromodulatory substance.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein said one or more regions internal to said brain comprise a scan volume.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein said one or more regions internal to said brain comprise a spatial pattern.

13. A method of treating a condition in a subject, wherein said condition is associated with activity of one or more regions internal to the brain of said subject comprising:

training said subject to modulate said activity using fMRI.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein said training comprises training said subject to increase the level of said activity or decrease the level of said activity.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein said training comprises training said subject to change the activity from a first activity metric to a second activity metric.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein said one or more regions have a primary function of releasing a neuromodulatory substance.

17. The method of claim 13 further comprising communicating information based upon activity measurements made by said fMRI to said subject in substantially real time.

20. The method of claim 13 wherein said one or more regions has abnormally increased or decreased activity due to an injury or disease.