Adaptive Alarm Threshold Updates for Physiological Monitoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Inaccurate or inappropriate alarm thresholds in medical monitoring devices can lead to missed or excessive alarms, posing serious risks to the subject's health.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method for determining whether to adjust alarm thresholds by monitoring physiological parameters and calculating a measure of proximity between parameter values and thresholds, using predetermined criteria to recommend updates when necessary.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If alarm thresholds are set to be close to normal physiological parameter values to detect early deviations, then sensitivity to detect undesirable medical states is improved, but false alarms increase due to normal physiological variations
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary action by continuously monitoring physiological parameters and proactively adjusting alarm thresholds before false alarms or missed detections occur. The threshold adjustment mechanism preemptively adapts thresholds based on observed physiological variations, preventing the harmful effects of both false alarms and missed detections rather than reacting after problems occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements feedback by continuously monitoring physiological parameters and using this information to dynamically adjust alarm thresholds. The measured physiological variations feed back into the threshold adjustment mechanism, allowing the system to adapt thresholds based on actual patient conditions, thereby reducing false alarms while maintaining sensitivity to true abnormalities.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If alarm thresholds are set far from normal values to avoid false alarms, then false alarm rate is reduced, but sensitivity to detect undesirable medical states deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies dynamics by making alarm thresholds dynamic rather than static. Thresholds automatically adjust based on monitored physiological variations, allowing the system to maintain optimal detection sensitivity across different patient states. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by enabling thresholds to be close to normal values when appropriate while avoiding false alarms during normal physiological variations.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of alarm thresholds based on observed physiological parameter variations. By modifying threshold values dynamically according to measured physiological data, the system maintains high sensitivity to detect undesirable states while adapting to normal variations that would otherwise trigger false alarms.
3Reliability
If alarm thresholds are manually adjusted to match individual patient characteristics, then alarm accuracy for specific patients is improved, but system complexity and time required for configuration increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements self-service by automatically adjusting alarm thresholds based on monitored physiological parameters without requiring manual configuration. The system serves itself by using its own measurement data to optimize its alarm thresholds, eliminating the need for complex manual setup while maintaining high alarm accuracy tailored to individual patient characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses feedback from continuous physiological monitoring to automatically configure appropriate alarm thresholds. By feeding back measured physiological variations into the threshold adjustment mechanism, the system automatically adapts to individual patient characteristics without requiring manual intervention, thereby maintaining high alarm accuracy while reducing system complexity.
Data Source
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AI summary
A mechanism for predicting whether or not an alarm threshold would benefit from being updated, i.e., is out of date. The physiological parameter, associated with the alarm threshold, is monitored and a set of values of the physiological parameter is processed to produce a proximity measure. Responsive to the proximity measure meeting one or more certain criteria, an update indicator indicating the alarm threshold should be updated is produced.