Remote DBS Tuning via Biokinetic Sensor Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current deep brain stimulation (DBS) systems for treating movement disorders like Parkinson's disease face challenges in accurately evaluating patient suitability, optimizing electrode placement, and adjusting stimulation parameters due to subjective assessment methods and limited access to specialized clinicians.
Innovation Solution
A semi-automated or automated system that uses objective biokinetic data to quantify movement disorder symptoms, providing real-time severity measures to guide clinician decision-making, and enabling remote adjustment of DBS parameters to improve patient outcomes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If subjective assessment methods are used to evaluate patient suitability for DBS, then clinician expertise is leveraged, but measurement precision and accessibility are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces subjective clinical assessment with objective biokinetic measurements using sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes) to quantify movement disorder symptoms. This substitution of mechanical/physical measurement systems for human-based subjective evaluation improves measurement precision while reducing dependency on clinician expertise and geographic accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary system consisting of wearable sensors and automated data processing algorithms that mediate between patient symptoms and treatment decisions. This intermediary layer objective-ifies the assessment process, providing precise, reproducible measurements without requiring direct clinician-patient interaction for evaluation.
2Reliability
If frequent outpatient programming sessions are conducted to optimize DBS parameters, then treatment effectiveness is improved, but loss of time and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements closed-loop feedback systems where wearable sensors continuously monitor patient symptoms and automatically adjust DBS parameters in real-time. This eliminates the need for frequent manual programming sessions, as the system self-optimizes based on objective biokinetic data, thereby reducing time loss while maintaining treatment reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables the DBS system to perform self-adjustment using integrated sensors and algorithms that automatically optimize stimulation parameters based on detected movement patterns. This self-service capability reduces the need for clinician intervention and frequent outpatient visits, saving time and resources while maintaining treatment effectiveness.
3Ease of operation
If remote tuning of DBS parameters is enabled, then accessibility for geographically disparate populations is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs a universal remote tuning system that can be accessed by clinicians anywhere in the world through standardized communication protocols. The system integrates multiple functions (sensor data collection, parameter adjustment, outcome monitoring) into a single accessible platform, improving ease of operation for geographically disparate populations without proportionally increasing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses communication networks and standardized data interfaces as intermediaries to connect remote clinicians with the DBS system. This intermediary infrastructure enables accessible remote tuning by transforming complex local operations into simplified remote interactions through digital communication, thereby improving accessibility without requiring direct complexity transfer to end users.
4Measurement precision
If objective biokinetic data collection is implemented, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity and initial costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the biokinetic data collection system into separate functional modules (accelerometer, gyroscope, processor, communication interface) that can be independently optimized and assembled. This segmentation allows for precise measurement capabilities while managing device complexity through modular design, where each component performs a specific function and can be selected based on specific measurement requirements.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to methods for remotely tuning treatment parameters in movement disorder therapy systems where the subject and clinician are located remotely from each other. The present invention still further provides methods of quantifying movement disorders for the treatment of patients who exhibit symptoms of such movement disorders including, but not limited to, Parkinson's disease and Parkinsonism, Dystonia, Chorea, and Huntington's disease, Ataxia, Tremor and Essential Tremor, Tourette syndrome, stroke, and the like. The present invention yet further relates to methods of remotely tuning a therapy device using objective quantified movement disorder symptom data to determine the therapy setting or parameters to be transmitted and provided to the subject via his or her therapy device. The present invention also provides treatment and tuning remotely, allowing for home monitoring of subjects.