Patient Anxiety Profiling via Simulated MRI Scan Environments
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Solution Overview
Problem
Anxiety and claustrophobia-related symptoms in patients undergoing MRI and PET scans lead to premature termination and affect image quality, impacting workflow efficiency and patient experience.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing sensory simulation devices to create a virtual scan environment, combined with patient monitoring and profile generation to determine anxiety levels, recommending personalized scan protocols and scanner characteristics to reduce anxiety.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If patients undergo MRI or PET scans in traditional scanner environments, then diagnostic imaging can be performed, but patient anxiety and claustrophobia increase leading to premature termination and reduced workflow efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary virtual reality simulation of the scan environment before the actual scan procedure. Patients experience a virtual representation of the scanner and scan conditions in advance, allowing them to mentally prepare and reducing anxiety during the real procedure. This preliminary exposure helps desensitize patients to the confined space and procedural elements that typically trigger claustrophobia.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a virtual copy of the physical scanner environment using 360-degree images and virtual reality technology. This digital replica allows patients to explore and familiarize themselves with the scanner interior without actually entering it, reducing the psychological impact of the confined space while maintaining the diagnostic value of the actual scan.
2Productivity
If standardized scan protocols are used for all patients, then workflow efficiency is maintained, but individual patient anxiety levels are not addressed leading to higher termination rates
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from static, standardized scan protocols to dynamic, adaptive protocols that adjust in real-time based on patient response. During the virtual reality simulation, the system monitors physiological parameters and behavioral responses, then automatically modifies scan parameters such as duration, sequence selection, and timing to match the individual patient's tolerance and comfort level.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements continuous feedback loops where patient physiological data (heart rate, respiration, skin conductance) and behavioral observations during virtual simulation inform real-time adjustments to the actual scan protocol. This feedback mechanism allows the system to optimize scan parameters for each patient, balancing diagnostic quality with patient comfort and compliance.
3Measurement precision
If patients are monitored during virtual scan simulation, then anxiety levels can be assessed, but additional monitoring equipment and processing requirements increase system complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs multi-functional monitoring devices that serve multiple purposes: physiological sensors monitor anxiety levels while also providing health data, cameras capture facial expressions while documenting the virtual reality experience, and motion sensors track patient movement while enabling interaction with the virtual environment. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated monitoring equipment.
Solution Approach 2:
The system utilizes the patient's own physiological responses and natural behaviors during virtual reality exposure as the monitoring data source. Rather than requiring complex external stimulation and response measurement systems, the system passively collects data from the patient's involuntary physiological reactions to the virtual scan environment, simplifying the monitoring architecture.
Data Source
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AI summary
In order to improve workflow efficiency and/or patient experience during a scan procedure, a system is proposed to provide – prior to arrival at the hospital – an indication of the suitability of a patient to be assigned to a specific level of autonomy in a medical scanning procedure. The system comprises a scan simulation module, a patient monitoring module, and a patient profile generation module. The scan simulation module comprises one or more sensory stimulation devices configured to apply at least one sensory stimulus over a patient to simulate a scan environment that may be experienced by a patient during a scan procedure. The patient monitoring module comprises one or more sensors configured to acquire data of the patient in the simulated scan environment. The patient profile generation module is configured to determine a state of anxiety of the patient based on the acquired data and to create a patient profile comprising the determined state of anxiety of the patient in the simulated scan environment.