System and method for adapting alarms in a wearable medical device

• US 9,684,767 B2
• Filed: 07/18/2016
• Issued: 06/20/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/25/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Zoll Medical Corporation (Asahi Kasei Corporation)
• Inventors: Volpe, Shane S., Macel, Ryan D., Amsler, Phillip Hier, Clark, John G., Kaib, Thomas E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lu, Shirley
• Application Number:
  US15/212,933
• Publication Number:
  US 20160328529A1
• Time in Patent Office: 337 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/361 Detecting fibrillation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/363 Detecting tachycardia or bradycardia
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/364 Detecting abnormal ECG interval, e.g. extrasystoles, ectopic heartbeats
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/366 Detecting abnormal QRS complex, e.g. widening
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7405 using sound
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/08 Arrangements or circuits for monitoring, protecting, controlling or indicating for external stimulators A61N1/3603; for implantable neurostimulators A61N1/36128; for heart stimulators A61N1/37; for defibrillators A61N1/3925
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3925 Monitoring; Protecting
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/0453 worn on the body to detect health condition by physiological monitoring, e.g. electrocardiogram, temperature, breathing detecting, measuring or recording for diagnostic purposes A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/18 Status alarms G08B21/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/24 Reminder alarms, e.g. anti-loss alarms
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

According to another example, a wearable medical device controller is provided. The device controller includes a memory and a processor coupled to the memory. The processor is configured to determine a correlation between a phenomenon identifiable by the wearable medical device controller and at least one response pattern associated with a patient and store, responsive to detecting the correlation, an adaptation path to address the at least one response pattern, the adaptation path specifying an adaptation of at least one characteristic of an alarm. The at least one response pattern may include a plurality of response patterns and the adaptation path may reflect adaptations made to address at least some of the plurality of response patterns.

Claims

1. An ambulatory medical device for monitoring and treating a cardiac abnormality of a patient comprising:

one or more ECG sensors for detecting the cardiac abnormality of the patient;

one or more therapy electrodes for treating the cardiac abnormality of the patient; and

a controller configured to

detect an occurrence of an event comprising the cardiac abnormality of the patient;

adapt at least one alarm based on an adaptation path;

issue a first instance of the alarm in response to detecting the occurrence of the event;

adapt one or more frequencies of the alarm according to the adaptation path, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies enable the patient to hear the alarm in a presence of inhibiting factors;

issue a second instance of the alarm if the patient has not responded to the first instance of the alarm; and

deliver a therapeutic shock via the therapy electrodes if the patient does not respond to the second instance of the alarm.

2. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

receive physiological data from the one or more ECG sensors;

monitor the physiological data for a cardiac abnormality; and

detect occurrence of a critical event if the cardiac abnormality is treatable with a therapeutic shock.

3. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies are selected based on the patient'"'"'s ability to recognize the one or more frequencies during a patient fitting session.

4. The ambulatory medical device of claim 3, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies are selected from a frequency range of 20 Hz to 20 kHz.

5. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies are selected based on an ability of an acoustic resonator to amplify a volume of the one or more frequencies.

6. The ambulatory medical device of claim 5, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies are selected from a frequency range of 2900 Hz to 3100 Hz.

7. The ambulatory medical device of claim 5, wherein the first instance of the alarm is output at a frequency selected such that the acoustic resonator does not amplify the volume of the alarm.

8. The ambulatory medical device of claim 5, wherein the acoustic resonator comprises a resonation chamber defining a predetermined volume.

9. The ambulatory medical device of claim 8, wherein the adapted one or more frequencies are selected based upon the predetermined volume of the resonation chamber.

10. The ambulatory medical device of claim 5, wherein the acoustic resonator further comprises:

a base defining a first volume of a resonation chamber in acoustic communication with a speaker; and

a column coupled to the base and defining a second volume of the resonation chamber, the second volume being in acoustic communication with the first volume and the speaker.

11. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein a total volume of the first volume and the second volume is from 1 cm³ to 20 cm³.

12. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein a total volume of the first volume and the second volume is approximately 2.24 cm³.

13. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the first volume is from 0.5 cm³ to 20 cm³.

14. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the second volume is from 0.8 cm³ to 0.9 cm³.

15. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the first volume is greater than the second volume.

16. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the first volume is less than the second volume.

17. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the first volume is equal to the second volume.

18. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein the speaker has an elliptical perimeter.

19. The ambulatory medical device of claim 10, wherein a ratio between a width of the resonation chamber to a width of the column is from 3.3 to 3.5.

20. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein the first instance of the alarm is a vibration alarm.

21. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein the controller is further configured to:

determine that no response to the first instance of the alarm was received within a target response time; and

issue the second instance of the alarm if the controller determines that the patient has not responded to the first instance of the alarm.

22. The ambulatory medical device claim 1, wherein the inhibiting factors comprise at least a lack of acuity of a patient'"'"'s senses.

23. The ambulatory medical device of claim 1, wherein a volume level of the second instance of the alarm is greater than a volume level of the first instance of the alarm.