Compartment Syndrome Monitoring Systems and Methods

• US 20120010525A1
• Filed: 07/08/2010
• Published: 01/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: TCI3-Pressure Applications LLC
• Original Assignee: TCI3-Pressure Applications LLC
• Inventors: Peeters, John P., JACOFSKY, Marc C., Jacofsky, David J.
• Granted Patent: US 9,314,175 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/561
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0247 Pressure sensors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/168 Fluid filled sensor housings
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/03 Detecting, measuring or recording fluid pressure within the body other than blood pressure, e.g. cerebral pressure; Measuring pressure in body tissues or organs A61B5/205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/036 by means introduced into body tracts A61B5/032 and A61B5/035 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/076 Permanent implantations telemetry using implanted circuitry A61B5/0031; implanted stimulators for therapy A61N1/3605, A61N1/362, A61N1/372
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4519 Muscles A61B5/389, A61B5/224 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6828 Leg
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6833 Adhesive patches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6853 with a balloon
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7275 Determining trends in physiological measurement data; Predicting development of a medical condition based on physiological measurements, e.g. determining a risk factor
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/746 Alarms related to a physiological condition, e.g. details of setting alarm thresholds or avoiding false alarms alarms per se G08B

Abstract

Embodiments of a compartment monitor that can be implanted and left in situ to continuously (or semi-continuously) measure compartment pressures are presented. An exemplary monitor includes a pressure sensor adapted to be implanted in a compartment, a transmitter external to the compartment and coupled to the pressure sensor, and a receiver in communication with the transmitter to receive and process pressure data received from the transmitter. The monitor may also be configured to transmit measured pressure data to a networkable device. The networkable device can then communicate the patient'"'"'s status and condition to a healthcare provider through a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN). This communication allows the healthcare provider to remotely monitor a patient. The networkable device, or associated computing system, can record and display trends in the pressure data over time, and log the data to the patient'"'"'s electronic health records.

Claims

1. A system for measuring and monitoring pressure within a compartment of a patient, comprising:

a pressure sensor adapted to be implanted within the compartment and to measure the pressure within the compartment;

a transmitter, external of the compartment and electrically coupled to the pressure sensor;

an adhesive substrate, wherein the transmitter is attached to the adhesive substrate; and

a receiver in wireless communication with the transmitter to receive, process, and store compartment pressure data received from the transmitter.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the transmitter is an RF transmitter.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the receiver is an RF receiver.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the RF transmitter and the RF receiver have a unique RFID tag.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the pressure sensor is a MEMS sensor.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the transmitter is a modified RFID chip, wherein the modified RFID chip includes a SPI port and is adapted to allow pre-processed sensor data to be stored in a memory directly linked to an ID interrogation loop.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a temperature sensor adapted to be implanted within the compartment and to measure the temperature within the compartment, wherein the temperature sensor is electrically coupled to the transmitter to transmit temperature data to the receiver.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a pH sensor adapted to be implanted within the compartment and to measure the pH within the compartment, wherein the pH sensor is electrically coupled to the transmitter to transmit pH data to the receiver.

9. A system for monitoring the pressure within a compartment of a patient, comprising:

an implantable MEMS pressure sensor;

a skin patch adapted to sit outside and proximate to the compartment;

a pressure interface integrated into the skin patch, wherein the pressure interface is coupled to the MEMS pressure sensor;

an RFID chip coupled to the pressure interface; and

a wireless network device adapted to receive compartment pressure data from the RFID chip.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the RFID chip has an identifier and the wireless network device has an identifier.

11. The system of claim 9, further comprising:

a temperature adjustment circuit adapted to calibrate processing of pressure sensor data in the RFID chip.

12. A system for monitoring the pressure within a compartment of a patient, comprising:

means for implanting a pressure sensor into the compartment;

means for communicating the pressure within the compartment to a transmitter, wherein the transmitter is adapted to be maintained external and proximate of the compartment;

means for wirelessly receiving pressure data from the transmitter.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

means for measuring a temperature inside of the compartment.

14. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

means for measuring a pH within the compartment.

15. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

means for cross-validating an ID of the transmitter with an ID of the means for wirelessly receiving pressure data from the transmitter.

16. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

means for continuously analyzing and trending the data from the transmitter.

17. A system for monitoring the pressure within a compartment of a patient, comprising:

an implantable, flexible, fluid-filled bulb;

a fluid-filled, inelastic tube fluidly coupled to the bulb;

a skin patch adapted to sit outside and proximate to the compartment;

a fluid pressure sensor integrated into the skin patch, wherein the fluid pressure sensor is fluidly coupled to the tube;

a pressure interface coupled to the pressure sensor;

an RFID chip coupled to the pressure interface; and

a wireless network device adapted to receive compartment pressure data from the RFID chip.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising:

a temperature adjustment circuit adapted to calibrate processing of pressure sensor data in the RFID chip.