System and Method for Facilitating Observation of Monitored Physiologic Data

Abstract

Present embodiments are directed to a system and method capable of detecting and graphically indicating physiologic patterns in patient data. For example, present embodiments may include a monitoring system that includes a monitor capable of receiving input relating to patient physiological parameters and storing historical data related to the parameters. Additionally, the monitoring system may include a screen capable of displaying the historical data corresponding to the patient physiological parameters. Further, the monitoring system may include a pattern detection feature capable of analyzing the historical data to detect a physiologic pattern in a segment of the historical data and capable of initiating a graphical indication of the segment on the screen when the physiologic pattern is present in the segment.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system, comprising:
 a monitor capable of receiving input relating to patient physiological parameters and storing data related to parameters, the monitor comprising:
 a detection feature capable of analyzing the data to detect reciprocations, defined by a fall peak, a nadir, and a rise peak; 
 a qualification feature capable of determining whether the detected reciprocations are caused by ventilatory instability; 
 a determination feature capable of maintaining a count of qualified reciprocations and activating a cluster state based at least on the count; and 
 a notification feature capable of indicating the presence of detected consecutive qualified reciprocations based at least in part on the cluster state. 
   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein data related to the parameters comprises pulse oximetry data. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , further comprising an index calculation feature capable of determining a scoring metric associated with the consecutive qualified reciprocations. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 3 , wherein the index calculation feature is capable of determining the scoring metric when the cluster state is activated. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 3 , further comprising an alarm that is triggered when the scoring metric reaches a predetermined threshold. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the detection feature is configured to use a statistical method to detect the reciprocations. 
     
     
         7 . A system, comprising:
 an input for receiving a sensor signal;   circuitry configured to process the sensor signal to generate data relating to a patient physiological parameter, the circuitry further configured for:
 analyzing the data to detect reciprocations, defined by a fall peak, a nadir, and a rise peak; 
 distinguishing detected reciprocations caused by ventilatory instability from detected reciprocations not caused by ventilatory instability; 
 maintaining a count of reciprocations caused by ventilatory instability and activating a cluster state based at least on the count; and 
 causing to be indicated a notification of the presence of detected consecutive reciprocations caused by ventilatory instability based at least in part on the cluster state. 
   
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the notification is a graphical indicator. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 8 , wherein the graphical indicator represents a percentage value associated with ventilatory instability detection. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the reciprocation count comprises a count of consecutive reciprocations caused by ventilatory instability. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to activate a cluster state when the reciprocation count exceeds a predetermined threshold. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to deactivate a cluster state when the time between two reciprocations caused by ventilatory instability exceeds a predetermined threshold. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the circuitry is further configured to determine a time since a last reciprocation due to ventilatory instability. 
     
     
         14 . A system, comprising:
 an input for receiving physiological data;   circuitry for determining an oxygen saturation data trend based on the physiological data;   a detection feature for detecting occurrences of a pattern in the oxygen saturation trend data defined by a fall peak, a nadir, and a rise peak;   a qualification feature for qualifying each detected occurrence of the pattern based on at least one characteristic of each respective detected occurrence;   a determination feature for determining a presence of a cluster of qualified detected patterns; and   a notification feature for indicating the presence of a physiological instability based on the presence of the cluster of qualified detected patterns.   
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the at least one characteristic comprises a metric selected from a group consisting of fall slope, magnitude, slope ratio, path length ratio, and any combination thereof. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 15 , wherein the qualification feature is configured to compare the metric to a predetermined limit. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the qualification feature is configured to use a least squares analysis to qualify detected occurrences of the pattern. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the qualification feature is configured to determine an indication of the amount of artifact present in the oximetry system. 
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the qualification feature is configured to use at least one linear qualification function to qualify detected occurrences of the pattern.