Wearable cardiac defibrillator (WCD) system controlling conductive fluid deployment per impedance settling at terminal value

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9895548-B2
Application number	US-201715614949-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 6, 2017
Priority date	Jan 23, 2013
Publication date	Feb 20, 2018
Grant date	Feb 20, 2018

Abstract

In embodiments, a wearable cardiac defibrillator system includes an energy storage module configured to store a charge. Two electrodes can be configured to be applied to respective locations of a patient. One or more reservoirs can store one or more conductive fluids. Respective fluid deploying mechanisms can be configured to cause the fluids to be released from one or more of the reservoirs, which decreases the impedance at the patient location, and decreases discomfort for the patient. In some embodiments an impedance is sensed between the two electrodes, and the stored charge is delivered when the sensed impedance meets a discharge condition. In some embodiments, different fluids are released for different patient treatments. In some embodiments, fluid release is controlled to be in at least two doses, with an intervening pause.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A wearable defibrillator system, comprising:
a support structure configured to be worn by a patient;
an energy storage module configured to store a charge;
two electrodes coupled with the support structure and configured to be applied to two respective patient locations of the patient;
an impedance measurement circuit configured to sense an impedance between the two electrodes;
a reservoir coupled to the support structure and configured to store a fluid; and
a fluid deploying mechanism configured to cause at least some of the stored fluid to be released from the reservoir and to be deployed near at least one of the patient locations, so as to cause the impedance sensed by the measurement circuit to be decreased, and
in which the stored charge is delivered to the patient locations via the electrodes after the sensed impedance has a value that changes less than a threshold in a given amount of time.

2. The system of claim 1 , in which
the reservoir includes an exit mechanism that has a directing tube.

3. The system of claim 1 , in which
the fluid deploying mechanism includes a pump configured to pump the fluid out of the reservoir.

4. The system of claim 1 , in which
an ECG measurement is taken via the electrodes.

5. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a user interface configured to output an alert responsive to the sensed impedance decreasing below an alert threshold.

6. The system of claim 1 , further comprising:
a memory, and
in which a time profile of the sensed impedance is stored in the memory.

7. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing one or more programs which, when executed by a defibrillator system including an energy storage module, an impedance measurement circuit, two electrodes configured to be applied to two respective patient locations of a patient, a reservoir containing a fluid, and a fluid deploying mechanism, they result in operations comprising:
storing a charge;
causing at least some of the contained fluid to be released from the reservoir and to be deployed near at least one of the patient locations, so as to cause an impedance between the two electrodes to be decreased;
sensing the impedance; and
causing the stored charge to be delivered to the patient locations via the electrodes after the sensed impedance has a value that changes less than a threshold in a given amount of time.

8. The medium of claim 7 , in which executing the one or more programs further results in:
taking an ECG measurement via the electrodes.

9. The medium of claim 7 , in which executing the one or more programs further results in:
outputting an alert responsive to the sensed impedance decreasing below an alert threshold.

10. The medium of claim 7 , in which
a time profile of the sensed impedance is stored in a memory.

11. A method for a defibrillator system including an energy storage module, an impedance measurement circuit, two electrodes configured to be applied to two respective patient locations of a patient, a reservoir containing a fluid, and a fluid deploying mechanism, the method comprising:
storing a charge;
causing at least some of the contained fluid to be released from the reservoir and to be deployed near at least one of the patient locations, so as to cause an impedance between the two electrodes to decrease;
sensing the impedance; and
causing the stored charge to be delivered to the patient locations via the electrodes after the sensed impedance has a value that changes less than a threshold in a given amount of time.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
taking an ECG measurement via the electrodes.

13. The method of claim 11 , in which
causing the at least some of the fluid to be released and be deployed includes pumping the fluid.

14. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:
outputting an alert responsive to the sensed impedance decreasing below an alert threshold.

15. The method of claim 11 , in which
a time profile of the sensed impedance is stored in a memory.

16. The system of claim 1 , in which
the threshold is a fraction of an instantaneously sensed impedance value.

17. The medium of claim 7 , in which
the threshold is a fraction of an instantaneously sensed impedance value.

18. The method of claim 11 , in which
the threshold is a fraction of an instantaneously sensed impedance value.

Assignees

• West Affum Holdings Corp

Inventors

• Piha Daniel Ralph
• Sullivan Joseph Leo
• Foshee Jr Phillip Dewey
• Finch Daniel Peter
• Banville Isabelle
• Gustavson Laura Marie
• Cowan Kenneth Frederick
• Nova Richard C
• Buchanan Robert Reuben
• Szul Krystyna
• Kavounas Gregory T

Classifications

• A61N1/3925

  Monitoring; Protecting · CPC title

• A61N1/046

  Specially adapted for shock therapy, e.g. defibrillation · CPC title

• A61N1/3904

  External heart defibrillators [EHD] · CPC title

• A61N1/3918 Primary

  characterised by shock pathway, e.g. by electrode configuration · CPC title

• A61N1/0496

  characterised by using specific chemical compositions, e.g. hydrogel compositions, adhesives · CPC title