Medical Data Management Unit for Robust Glucose Trend Analysis
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current data management units for monitoring physiological parameters, such as blood glucose levels, are difficult for patients and healthcare professionals to interpret, as they often require advanced mathematical knowledge and are not effective in providing clear trend information over time, especially for adjusting therapy in conditions like diabetes.
Innovation Solution
A data management unit that stores measurement values with timestamps and uses a processor to calculate median values over defined time intervals, indicating trends such as increasing, steady, or decreasing through visible signs or audible signals, thereby providing robust and easy-to-understand trend information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If complex statistical measures and graphical representations are used to analyze measurement values, then the information content is increased, but the ease of interpretation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the complex data analysis into distinct functional components: a data management unit that handles storage and retrieval of measurement values, and a trend indicator that processes and presents simplified trend information. This segmentation allows each component to specialize - the data management unit preserves complete information while the trend indicator delivers easily interpretable results through simple visual cues like arrows indicating upward, downward, or stable trends.
2Measurement precision
If advanced mathematical analysis methods are applied to measurement data, then the measurement precision is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary processing layer between the raw measurement data and the final presentation to the user. The trend indicator acts as this intermediary, receiving comprehensive measurement values from the data management unit and transforming them into simplified trend indicators. This intermediary approach maintains measurement precision by preserving all original data while reducing presentation complexity through intermediate processing that applies mathematical analysis internally but presents only simple visual results to the user.
3Reliability
If detailed statistical measures are displayed to provide comprehensive information, then the reliability of analysis is improved, but the ease of operation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the trend indicator continuously monitors measurement values and provides real-time visual feedback about trend directions. The data management unit stores historical measurement data and enables the trend indicator to compare current values with previous values, generating feedback in the form of simple directional indicators (upward, downward, or stable arrows). This feedback approach maintains analytical reliability by continuously processing all available data while presenting feedback in an easily interpretable visual format that does not require advanced mathematical knowledge.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention refers to a data management unit for supporting health control and a corresponding medical device comprising a data storage (130) adapted to store a plurality of measurement values of a physiological parameter, for example the fasting blood glucose level, and for each measurement value an associated time stamp and a trend indicator (164), wherein the trend indicator is adapted to indicate different trend categories, for example an increasing trend, a steady trend and a decreasing trend, preferably as a respective visible sign (201,202) on a display (162) and/or as a respective audible signal by a loudspeaker, a processor (140) adapted to select a first group of measurement values and a second group of measurement values from the plurality of measurement values of the data storage (130) such that the associated time stamp of each of the measurement values of the first group is in a predefined first time interval and the associated time stamp of each of the measurement values of the second group is in a predefined second time interval, wherein the second time interval is more recent than the first time interval, wherein the processor is further adapted to calculate a first mean value as a median from the first group of measurement values and a second mean value from the second group of measurement values, wherein the processor (140) interacts with the trend indicator (164) such that the trend indicator (164) indicate one of the different trend categories, for example the increasing trend, the steady trend or the decreasing trend, dependent on a result of a comparison of the second mean value to the first mean value. Additionally, the invention refers to a corresponding method and a computer program for indicating a trend, and to a corresponding computer program product.