Systems and methods for interacting with an implantable medical device

An interactive implantable medical device system for monitoring and treating a patient, comprising:

• an external computing device adapted for communication over a data link;
• and
• an implantable device having a communication subsystem adapted for bi-directional communication with the external computing device;
• wherein the external computing device is adapted to receive and store a data item from the patient and to transmit the data item to a database.

An interactive implantable medical device system for monitoring and treating a patient, comprising:

• an external interactive computing device adapted for communication over a communications network;
• an implantable device having a communication subsystem adapted for bi-directional communication with the external device;
• and
• a remote computing device adapted for communication over the communications network with the external interactive computing device;
• wherein the remote computing device is adapted to receive a data item from the implantable device via the external interactive computing device, to process the data item, and to program the implantable device with a parameter derived at least in part from the data item.

A method for using an interactive implantable medical device system to monitor and treat a patient, the method comprising the steps of:

• receiving a data item input from the patient with an external device;
• storing the data item in the external device;
• associating the data item with an existing storage record in the external device;
• receiving a data record from an implantable device with the external device;
• and
• storing the data record in the external device.

A method for upgrading a software program in an interactive implantable medical device system, the method comprising the steps of:

• transmitting a new software program from a repository to an intermediate device;
• awaiting a connection between a target device and the intermediate device;
• sending the new software program from the intermediate device to the target device;
• verifying the correctness of the new software program;
• and
• if the new software program is correct, replacing an old software program with the new software program in the target device.

A method for programming a target device in an interactive implantable medical device system, the method comprising the steps of:

• awaiting a connection between the target device and a programming device;
• sending a new parameter set from the programming device to the target device;
• programming the new parameter set into the target device;
• and
• updating a record in a database.

A method for avoiding overuse of interactive capabilities of an interactive implantable medical device system, the method comprising the steps of:

• receiving a command input from a user;
• verifying the identity of the user;
• identifying the command input and associating the command input with a desired action;
• accessing a history of command inputs from the user;
• determining whether the action should be allowed based on the desired action, the history of command inputs, and a time of the command input;
• and
• if the action should be allowed, performing the action.

A method for synchronizing an acting device in an interactive implantable medical device system with a database, the method comprising the steps of:

• performing an action with the acting device;
• storing a data representation of the action in the acting device;
• awaiting a connection between the acting device and the database;
• and
• transmitting the data representation of the action to the database.

A method for using an interactive implantable medical device system in a deferred mode, the method comprising the steps of:

• identifying a data item to transmit from a source device to a destination device;
• awaiting a connection between the source device and the destination device;
• if the connection is available, performing an action and transmitting the data item from the source device to the destination device;
• and
• if the connection is not available, performing a conditional action and queueing the data item for later transmission.

A method for using an interactive implantable medical device system to interrogate an implantable device and synchronize with a database, the method comprising the steps of:

• awaiting a connection between the implantable device and an intermediate device;
• transferring operation data between the implantable device and the intermediate device;
• storing a data item in the intermediate device representative of the operation data;
• awaiting a connection between the intermediate device and the database;
• and
• transmitting the data item from the intermediate device to the database.