Medical device configured to test for user responsiveness

• US 8,271,082 B2
• Filed: 04/30/2008
• Issued: 09/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: Donnelly, Edward J., Clark, John G., Szymkiewicz, Steven J., Kaib, Thomas E., Linder, Marshal
• Primary Examiner(s): Layno, Carl H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dinga, Roland
• Application Number:
  US12/150,720
• Publication Number:
  US 20080306562A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,602 Days
• Field of Search: 607 5- 8, 607/4, 607/10
• US Class Current: 607/6
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/046 Specially adapted for shock therapy, e.g. defibrillation
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0484 Garment electrodes worn by the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37217 characterised by the communication link, e.g. acoustic or tactile
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3904 External heart defibrillators [EHD]
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3925 Monitoring; Protecting
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3987 characterised by the timing or triggering of the shock
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3993 User interfaces for automatic external defibrillators

Abstract

A medical device is disclosed that includes one or more treatment electrodes, one or more sensors, and one or more controllers connected to the one or more treatment electrodes and one or more sensors. The medical device also includes one or more response mechanisms connected to the one or more controllers. The one or more controllers are configured to receive input from the one or more response mechanism and are also configured to determine whether a patient wearing the medical device actuated the one or more response mechanisms based, at least in part, on the input received from the one or more response mechanisms. In some disclosed embodiments, the medical device is a wearable defibrillator.

Claims

1. A wearable defibrillator comprising:

at least one sensing electrode configured to detect a marker signal received from a body of a patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

at least one controller connected to the at least one sensing electrode; and

at least one response mechanism connected to the at least one controller, the at least one response mechanism configured to be actuated by the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator and to transmit the marker signal into the body of the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator during actuation of the at least one response mechanism;

wherein the at least one controller is configured to receive the detected marker signal from the at least one sensing electrode and verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the detected marker signal received by the at least one controller during the actuation of the at least one response mechanism.

2. The wearable defibrillator of claim 1, wherein the at least one sensing electrode includes a biometric sensor.

3. The wearable defibrillator of claim 1, further comprising at least one of a display and a speaker connected to the at least one controller.

4. The wearable defibrillator of claim 1, wherein the wearable defibrillator is configured to prevent rendering treatment to the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator in response to verifying that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator had physical contact with the at least one response mechanism during actuation of the at least one response mechanism.

5. The wearable defibrillator of claim 1, wherein the at least one response mechanism comprises at least one transducer, and wherein the wearable defibrillator further comprises a signal generator coupled to the at least one transducer and configured to generate the marker signal.

6. The wearable defibrillator of claim 5, wherein the at least one transducer includes a biometric transducer.

7. A wearable defibrillator comprising:

at least one treatment electrode configured to emit a falloff signal into a body of a patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

a plurality of sensors configured to detect the falloff signal from the body of the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

at least one controller connected to the at least one treatment electrode and the plurality of sensors;

at least one response mechanism connected to the at least one controller, the at least one response mechanism configured to be actuated by the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator and to detect the falloff signal from the body of the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator during actuation of the at least one response mechanism; and

at least one falloff signal generator connected to at least one of the at least one controller and the at least one treatment electrode, the at least one falloff signal generator configured to transmit the falloff signal into the body of the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

wherein the at least one controller is configured to receive the falloff signal detected by the at least one response mechanism and verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the falloff signal received by the at least one controller via the at least one response mechanism during actuation of the at least one response mechanism, the at least one controller further being configured to receive the falloff signal detected by each of the plurality of sensors and to determine that a respective sensor of the plurality of sensors has become disconnected from the body of the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator in response to the falloff signal not being detected by the respective sensor.

8. The wearable defibrillator of claim 7, wherein the at least one response mechanism comprises at least one detector configured to receive the falloff signal when the patient actuates the at least one response mechanism.

9. The wearable defibrillator of claim 7, wherein the at least one response mechanism comprises at least one button connected to at least one of a detector and a transducer.

10. The wearable defibrillator of claim 7, further comprising at least one of a display and a speaker connected to the at least one controller.

11. A wearable defibrillator comprising:

at least one treatment electrode configured to be attached to a body of a patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

at least one sensor;

at least one controller connected to the at least one treatment electrode and the at least one sensor; and

at least one response mechanism connected to the at least one controller, the at least one response mechanism configured to be actuated by the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

wherein the at least one controller is configured to receive input from the at least one response mechanism and determine whether the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the input received by the at least one controller during actuation of the at least one response mechanism; and

wherein the at least one response mechanism comprises at least one detector configured to detect a capacitance of a person during the actuation of the at least one response mechanism and wherein the at least one controller is further configured to determine a capacitance value from the input to verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator is the person that actuated the at least one response mechanism.

12. The wearable defibrillator of claim 11, wherein the at least one controller is configured to compare the capacitance value to a range of capacitance values of the patient and to verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator is the person that actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the comparison.

13. The wearable defibrillator of claim 11, further comprising at least one of a display and a speaker connected to the at least one controller.

14. A wearable defibrillator, comprising:

at least one treatment electrode configured to be attached to a body of a patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

at least one sensor configured to receive a first ECG signal from the body of the patient;

at least one controller connected to the at least one treatment electrode and the at least one sensor; and

at least one response mechanism connected to the at least one controller, the at least one response mechanism configured to be actuated by the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator;

wherein the at least one controller is configured to receive input from the at least one response mechanism and determine whether the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the input received by the at least one controller during actuation of the at least one response mechanism;

wherein the at least one response mechanism comprises at least one detector configured to receive a second ECG signal of a person during the actuation of the at least one response mechanism and wherein the at least one controller is further configured to verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator is the person that actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the second ECG signal.

15. The wearable defibrillator of claim 14, wherein the at least one controller is configured to compare the first ECG signal with the second ECG signal to verify that the patient wearing the wearable defibrillator is the person that actuated the at least one response mechanism based at least in part on the comparison.

16. The wearable defibrillator of claim 15, wherein the at least one controller is configured to compare the first ECG signal with the second ECG signal utilizing at least one of morphology comparisons, rate comparisons and R-wave synchronizations.

17. The wearable defibrillator of claim 14, further comprising at least one of a display and a speaker connected to the at least one controller.