Involuntary Reflex Cough Diagnostic Device for Neurological Deficiency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current diagnostic tests for urinary incontinence, such as the Valsalva maneuver, require patients to generate forceful abdominal contractions or coughs, which some patients cannot perform due to neurological deficiencies or embarrassment, leading to inadequate diagnosis.
Innovation Solution
A handheld device that induces an involuntary reflex cough, measuring electromyogram (EMG) data from paraspinal muscles and intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) to diagnose neurological deficiencies without requiring voluntary efforts, using a catheter to monitor bladder activity and detect urine leakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional diagnostic tests (Valsalva maneuver, voluntary cough) are used, then diagnosis can be performed with simple equipment, but patients unable to perform voluntary contractions cannot be adequately diagnosed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical voluntary cough mechanism with an electrically stimulated reflex cough mechanism. Electrical stimuli are applied to the vagus nerve to trigger an involuntary cough reflex, eliminating the need for patient voluntary effort while maintaining the diagnostic pressure increase needed to test for stress incontinence
Solution Approach 2:
The vagus nerve serves as an intermediary between the electrical stimulus and the cough reflex. By stimulating the vagus nerve, the system indirectly produces the cough effect needed for diagnosis without requiring direct patient voluntary action
2Measurement precision
If voluntary cough tests are used, then the test procedure is simple and quick, but the diagnosis becomes subjective and unreliable for patients with neurological deficiencies
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces subjective patient-reported symptoms with objective electrical measurements. EMG sensors detect electrical activity in abdominal muscles during the reflex cough, providing quantifiable data that eliminates subjectivity in diagnosis
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates an electrical copy or surrogate of the cough mechanism by directly stimulating the neural pathways. Instead of measuring the physical cough itself, the system measures the electrical precursor signals that indicate the cough reflex is occurring
3Stress or pressure
If patients are required to perform forceful abdominal contractions, then intra-abdominal pressure can be increased to test for incontinence, but patients with neurological damage cannot generate sufficient pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical pressure-generating mechanism (voluntary abdominal contraction) with a neural reflex mechanism. Electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve triggers an involuntary cough that automatically generates the necessary intra-abdominal pressure without requiring patient muscle strength or coordination
Solution Approach 2:
The reflex cough mechanism serves itself by automatically generating the required intra-abdominal pressure through the coordinated action of diaphragmatic and abdominal muscle contraction triggered by the vagus nerve stimulus, eliminating the need for external patient effort
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Provides a quantitative, non-subjective diagnosis of neurological deficiencies and urinary incontinence, enabling accurate classification of patients within normal or abnormal pressure ranges, even in patients who cannot perform voluntary coughs or contractions.
Implementation Method 1
receive electromyogram (EMG) data from at least one EMG sensor located at the paraspinal muscles
Implementation Method 2
receive data relating intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) obtained during the involuntary cough reflex event
Data Source
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AI summary
A device for diagnosing a patient for a physiological abnormality comprises a handheld housing carrying at least one interface configured to receive electromyogram (EMG) data from a sensor located at the paraspinal muscles in the pelvis of the patient, such data being activated by an involuntary reflex cough event that activates the nucleus ambiguous and medial motor cell column of the patient. The interface is also configured to receive intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) data obtained during the involuntary cough reflex test. The housing also carries a processor configured to receive the EMG and IAP and correlate the IAP with the EMG and with the duration of the involuntary reflex cough event to diagnose a physiological deficiency.