System and method for receiving an indication of proper body locations of sensors on a patient

• US 9,386,931 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2010
• Issued: 07/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Covidien LP (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Covidien LP (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: McKenna, Edward M.
• Primary Examiner(s): VINCENT, DAVID ROBERT
• Application Number:
  US12/751,785
• Publication Number:
  US 20110245622A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,295 Days
• Field of Search: 706/12, 706/45, 706/62
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/029 adapted for auto-initiation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02416 using photoplethysmograph signals, e.g. generated by infrared radiation A61B5/14552 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/684 Indicating the position of the sensor on the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/726 using Wavelet transforms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7267 involving training the classification device
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

Systems, methods, and devices for determining whether a medical sensor has been properly applied to a patient are provided. In one embodiment, a patient monitor having such capabilities may include a medical sensor interface and data processing circuitry. The medical sensor interface may receive physiological data from a medical sensor applied to a patient. The data processing circuitry may be capable of being trained, using a learning-based algorithm, to determine whether the received physiological data indicates that the medical sensor has been properly applied to the patient.

Claims

1. A patient monitor comprising:

a medical sensor interface configured to receive physiological data from a medical sensor applied to a patient and to receive from the medical sensor an indication of a proper body location of the patient to which the medical sensor is to be applied; and

data processing circuitry configured to be trained, using a learning-based algorithm, to determine whether the received physiological data indicates that the medical sensor has been properly applied to the patient.

2. The patient monitor of claim 1, wherein the data processing circuitry is configured to be trained, using the learning-based algorithm, to determine whether the received physiological data indicates that the medical sensor has been applied to the proper body location of the patient.

3. The patient monitor of claim 1, wherein the data processing circuitry is configured to be trained, using the learning-based algorithm, to determine whether the received physiological data indicates that the patient has a disease or a condition.

4. The patient monitor of claim 1, wherein the data processing circuitry is configured to be trained, using the learning-based algorithm, by receiving physiological data obtained from a plurality of medical sensors applied to known body locations of a plurality of patients and determining classes of physiological data associated with the known body locations.

5. The patient monitor of claim 1, wherein the data processing circuitry is configured to determine whether the medical sensor has been properly applied to the patient by comparing the received physiological data to one or more classes of physiological data associated with known body locations.

6. The patient monitor of claim 1, wherein the physiological data from the medical sensor comprises photoplethysmographic data, temperature, respiration rate, blood pressure, electrocardiogram data, or pulse transit time sensors, or any combination thereof.

7. A method comprising:

receiving, onto data processing circuitry, medical sensor data obtained from one or more medical sensors properly applied to one or more known body locations;

determining, using the data processing circuitry, one or more classes of sensor data characteristics associated with proper application of the one or more medical sensors to the one or more known body locations;

storing, onto a memory device, the one or more classes of sensor data characteristics, wherein the medical sensor data is derived from a plurality of patients with one or more known medical conditions and wherein at least one of the one or more classes of sensor data characteristics is associated with the one or more known medical conditions;

receiving subsequent medical sensor data obtained from a medical sensor applied to a patient onto the data processing circuitry and comparing the subsequent medical sensor data to the one or more classes to determine whether the patient has one of the one or more known medical conditions; and

changing alarm limits associated with the received medical sensor data when the patient is determined to have one of the one or more known medical conditions.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the one or more classes of sensor data characteristics represent particular values, time-dependent changes detected in the medical sensor data, or frequency-dependent changes detected in the medical sensor data, or any combination thereof.

9. The method of claim 7, comprising receiving the subsequent medical sensor data obtained from the medical sensor applied to the patient onto the data processing circuitry and comparing the subsequent medical sensor data to the one or more classes to determine whether the medical sensor has been properly applied to the patient.