Implantable Medical Device Dynamic Data Resolution for Heart Failure Monitoring
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical devices lack the capability to continuously monitor patients for heart failure risk outside of hospital settings, leading to inadequate data availability for healthcare professionals during hospitalization and post-hospitalization periods, which can result in delayed intervention and increased risk of hospital readmission.
Innovation Solution
An implantable medical device (IMD) that automatically generates and stores patient metrics such as thoracic impedance, heart rate variability, and cardiac resynchronization therapy data, transmitting higher resolution information during hospitalization to aid treatment evaluation and lower resolution information during post-hospitalization to assess re-hospitalization risk, enabling remote monitoring and tailored treatment adjustments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If higher resolution diagnostic information is transmitted continuously, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of information increases due to data volume management challenges
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the resolution of diagnostic information based on the patient's clinical status. During hospitalization, higher resolution data is transmitted to capture detailed treatment response. During post-hospitalization periods, lower resolution data suffices for monitoring. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by matching data resolution to actual clinical needs rather than using a fixed high-resolution approach
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the parameter of data resolution based on the patient's phase of care. During hospitalization, the resolution parameter is set to high to evaluate treatment effectiveness. During post-hospitalization monitoring, the resolution parameter is reduced to optimize data management. This parameter change strategy allows the system to maintain measurement precision when needed while preventing information loss through excessive data accumulation
2Measurement precision
If higher resolution diagnostic information is transmitted during hospitalization, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases for data transmission and processing
Solution Approach 1:
The transmission of diagnostic information is segmented into different phases: hospitalization period and post-hospitalization period. During hospitalization, higher resolution data is transmitted but only for the necessary duration of the stay. After discharge, the system switches to lower resolution transmission. This segmentation resolves the contradiction by limiting high-resolution data transmission to the specific time window when it is clinically necessary, thereby reducing overall time loss
3Reliability
If continuous monitoring is implemented, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The monitoring system employs dynamic operation modes that adjust the level of monitoring intensity based on the patient's location and clinical status. During hospitalization, continuous high-resolution monitoring is activated. After discharge, the system transitions to a less intensive monitoring mode with lower resolution data transmission. This dynamic approach maintains reliability during critical periods while reducing device complexity during routine post-hospitalization follow-up
Solution Approach 2:
The implantable medical device is designed with multi-functionality to handle both high-resolution and low-resolution monitoring modes, as well as to manage different data transmission protocols. This universal design allows the same device to provide reliable continuous monitoring when needed while simplifying operations during routine periods, thereby managing device complexity without sacrificing monitoring reliability
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques for transmitting diagnostic information stored in an implantable medical device (IMD) based on patient hospitalization are described. For example, the IMD may transmit higher resolution diagnostic information to a clinician and/or an external device during a hospitalization period to aid the clinician in evaluating heart failure treatment and when discharge is proper. This higher resolution diagnostic information may include one or more patient metrics automatically generated and transmitted by the IMD at least once every two hours. During a post-hospitalization period, the IMD may transmit lower resolution diagnostic information to a clinician that indicates a risk level of re-hospitalization. The lower resolution diagnostic information may include the risk level and/or patient metrics once a day, for example. In this manner, the IMD transmitted diagnostic information may be tailored to the specific heart failure monitoring needed by the patient.