Method and system aiding medical diagnosis and treatment

• US 6,122,351 A
• Filed: 09/08/1999
• Issued: 09/19/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 01/21/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Medgraph Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Medgraph Incorporated
• Inventors: DeSarra, Paul A., Schlueter, Edward L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Maung, Zarni
• Assistant Examiner(s): LEE, TAK KAM
• Application Number:
  US09/392,117
• Time in Patent Office: 377 Days
• Field of Search: 379/106.02, 379/38, 379/93, 709/203, 600/300, 600/301, 283/76
• US Class Current: 379/106.02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/00 Measuring for diagnostic purposes radiation diagnosis A61B6/00; diagnosis by ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves A61B8/00; Identification of persons
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0002 Remote monitoring of patients using telemetry, e.g. transmission of vital signals via a communication network A61B5/07 takes precedence; transmission systems for measured values G08C; transmission H04B; transmission of digital information H04L; wireless communication networks H04W
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/14532 for measuring glucose, e.g. by tissue impedance measurement
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/65 stored on portable record carriers, e.g. on smartcards, RFID tags or CD
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/00 Telephonic communication systems specially adapted for combination with other electrical systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 11/002 with telemetering systems telemetering in general G08C

Abstract

A method and system that assists medical practitioners who treat or prescribe treatment of patients having a medical condition which requires long-term profiling of medical data taken from the patient'"'"'s body. Medical practitioners, their assistants, and patients take medical readings of predetermined medically important variables. These readings are stored as raw data in a data receptacle such as a smart card or in a portable medical instrument, then input into a remote computer, or the raw data is manually entered into a remote computer. The remote computer then connects with a primary computer using a communications connection and transmits the raw data to the primary computer system which maintains a database of patients and their medical readings. The communications connection can be any means of connecting two computers for communication therebetween but is preferably an Internet connection wherein the remote computer is operated as a web client and the primary computer is operated as a web server. The readings can also be transmitted to the primary computer using an ordinary telephone to call a telephone peripheral which can receive the raw data using automated speech recognition or touch-tone recognition. Requests for data by medical practitioners is transmitted to the primary computer in a manner similar to the transmission of raw data. In response to a request for data, output, in the form of a chart or graph, or multiple charts and graphs, is transmitted to the remote computer for display on the computer screen and/or printed for hard copy, or faxed to the medical practitioner or assistant.

Claims

1. A method for improving and facilitating diagnosis and treatment of patients having medical conditions requiring long-term profiles of specific variables, said method including the steps of:

using at least one measuring device, periodically taking a measurement of at least one medically important variable that has been identified for a patient from a body of said patient;

ensuring said patient is separated from said at least one measuring device after taking each said measurement;

inputing said at least one medically important variable as raw data into a primary computer system after said step of ensuring said patient is separated and recording said raw data in a mass storage device integrated with said primary computer system;

compiling said raw data as data for said patient using the primary computer system, said data representing a history of values for said at least one medically important variable for said patient;

receiving a request for data of one of said patients from by a medical practitioner that is treating said one of said patients; and

outputting requested data for said one of said patients in the form of at least one of a chart and a graph to said medical practitioner;

said step of inputting comprising one of;

transferring electronically said raw data from said measuring device to said primary computer using an automated telephone interface, without the manual input of said data;

transferring electronically said raw data from said measuring device to a data receptacle, then transferring electronically said raw data from said data receptacle to said primary computer using an automated telephone interface, without the manual input of said data; and

transferring electronically said raw data from said measuring device to a data receptacle, then transferring said raw data from said data receptacle to a remote computer, without the manual input of said data then transferring said raw data from said remote computer to said primary computer system.