THERAPY ADJUSTMENT BASED ON PATIENT EVENT INDICATION

• US 20090083070A1
• Filed: 09/23/2008
• Published: 03/26/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Kovach, Peter J., Werder, Jonathan C., Giftakis, Jonathon E., Graves, Nina M., Ullestad, David C., Ball, Warren W., Alme, Sarah B.
• Granted Patent: US 10,561,845 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36132 using patient feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36135 using physiological parameters
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37247 User interfaces, e.g. input or presentation means
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37258 Alerting the patient
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/40 relating to mechanical, radiation or invasive therapies, e.g. surgery, laser therapy, dialysis or acupuncture
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

An indication that a patient event occurred may be used to evaluate the efficacy of at least one therapy program and/or adjust therapy delivery to the patient. In some examples, the patient event indication includes patient input that may be received via an event indication button of a programming device. In some examples, therapy delivery may be adjusted by adjusting at least one therapy parameter value, switching therapy programs or therapy program groups or restarting a therapy cycle of a medical device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving input from a patient indicating an occurrence of a patient event related to a condition of the patient;

generating an event marker based on the input from the patient; and

adjusting therapy delivered by a medical device to the patient, wherein the medical device delivers therapy according to a therapy cycle comprising an on-cycle and an off-cycle, and adjusting therapy comprises;

determining whether the medical device is in the off-cycle or the on-cycle at a time the event marker is generated;

initiating the on-cycle if the medical device is in the off-cycle at the time the event marker is generated; and

restarting the on-cycle if the medical device is in the on-cycle at the time the event marker is generated.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising recording a date and time the event marker was generated in a memory.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting therapy comprises generating a signal to control the medical device to adjust the therapy delivered to the patient.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient condition comprises at least one of a seizure disorder, a psychiatric disorder, urinary incontinence, fecal incontinence, chronic headaches or a movement disorder.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the medical device is configured to deliver the therapy to the patient according to the at least one therapy program, the method further comprising:

associating the event marker with the at least one therapy program; and

determining an event metric for the at least one therapy program based on the event marker.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the event metric comprises at least one of a total number of event markers associated with the at least one therapy program, a number of event markers per unit of time or a change from a baseline condition of the patient.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving event information relating to the patient event from the patient;

associating the event information with the event marker; and

storing the event information within a memory.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the event information comprises at least one of an efficacy of therapy delivery by the medical device, a type of patient event, a duration of the patient event, a severity of the patient event, a type of drug taken prior to the patient event, a drug dosage taken prior to the patient event or an activity engaged in by the patient prior to the patient event.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein, during the on-cycle, the medical device delivers the therapy to the patient according to at least one therapy program that defines a therapy parameter value, and adjusting therapy further comprises modifying the therapy parameter value.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein, during the on-cycle, the medical device delivers the therapy to the patient according to a first therapy program and adjusting therapy further comprises selecting a second therapy program for the medical device.

11. A system comprising:

a medical device that delivers therapy to a patient according to a therapy cycle comprising an on-cycle and an off-cycle; and

a processor that receives input from a patient indicating an occurrence of a patient event, wherein the patient event is related to a condition of the patient, generates an event marker based on the input, determines whether the medical device is in the off-cycle or the on-cycle at a time the event marker is generated, initiates the on-cycle if the medical device is in the off-cycle at the time the event marker is generated, and restarts the on-cycle if the medical device is in the on-cycle at the time the event marker is generated.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising a medical device programmer comprising an event indication input mechanism, wherein the processor receives the input from the patient via the event indication input mechanism.

13. The system of claim 11, wherein the medical device delivers the therapy to the patient according to at least one therapy program, and the processor associates the event marker with the at least one therapy program and determines an event metric for the at least one therapy program based on the event marker.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the event metric comprises at least one of a total number of event markers associated with the at least one therapy program, a number of event markers per unit of time or a change from a baseline condition of the patient.

15. The system of claim 11, further comprising a user interface and a memory, wherein the processor receives event information relating to the condition of the patient from the patient via the user interface and associates the event marker with the event information and stores the event information and event marker in the memory.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the event information comprises at least one of an efficacy of therapy delivery by the medical device, a type of patient event, a duration of the patient event, a severity of the patient event, a type of drug taken prior to the patient event, a drug dosage taken prior to the patient event or an activity engaged in by the patient prior to the patient event.

17. The system of claim 11, further comprising a memory, wherein the processor records a date and time the event marker was generated in the memory.

18. The system of claim 11, wherein, during the on-cycle, the medical device delivers the therapy to the patient according to at least one therapy program that defines a therapy parameter value, and the processor adjusts therapy by at least modifying the therapy parameter value.

19. The system of claim 11, wherein, during the on-cycle, the medical device delivers the therapy to the patient according to a first therapy program and the processor adjusts therapy by at least selecting a second therapy program for the medical device.

20. A system comprising:

means for receiving input from a patient indicating an occurrence of a patient event related to a condition of the patient;

means for generating an event marker based on the input from the patient; and

means for adjusting therapy delivered by a medical device to the patient, wherein the medical device delivers therapy according to a therapy cycle comprising an on-cycle and an off-cycle, and the means for adjusting therapy comprises;

means for determining whether the medical device is in the off-cycle or the on-cycle at a time the event marker is generated;

means for initiating the on-cycle if the medical device is in the off-cycle at the time the event marker is generated; and

means for restarting the on-cycle if the medical device is in the on-cycle at the time the event marker is generated.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the medical device is configured to deliver the therapy to the patient according to the at least one therapy program, the system further comprising:

means for associating the event marker with the at least one therapy program; and

means for determining an event metric for the at least one therapy program based on the event marker.

22. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that cause a programmable processor to:

receive input from a patient indicating an occurrence of a patient event related to a condition of the patient;

generate an event marker based on the input from the patient; and

adjust therapy delivered by a medical device to the patient, wherein the medical device delivers therapy according to a therapy cycle comprising an on-cycle and an off-cycle, and the instructions cause the programmable processor to;

determine whether the medical device is in the off-cycle or the on-cycle at a time the event marker is generated;

initiate the on-cycle if the medical device is in the off-cycle at the time the event marker is generated; and

restart the on-cycle if the medical device is in the on-cycle at the time the event marker is generated.