Method and Apparatus for Monitoring Arrythmogenic Effects of Medications Using an Implantable Device
AssigneePacesetter, Inc.
InventorTaraneh Ghaffari Farazi
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Abstract
An implantable device and method for monitoring changes in the risk of arrhythmia induced by medications. The implantable device monitors risk of arrhythmia by analyzing an aspect of T-wave morphology to generate a metric of transmural dispersion of repolarization (“TDR”) as a proxy for the risk of arrhythmia. The implantable device generates an index of change in the risk of arrhythmia by comparing values of the metric of TDR obtained for different time periods. The implantable device generates a warning if the change in risk of arrhythmia is outside acceptable limits. The implantable device can also communicate with other devices to correlate changes in risk of arrhythmia with medications taken by the patient.
Claims4
A method performed by an external device in conjunction with an implantable medical device implanted within a patient, the method comprising:
- (a) obtaining an electrogram (EGM) signal from a patient via the implantable system;
- (b) analyzing an attribute of T-waves of the EGM signal to generate a metric representative of transmural dispersion of repolarization (TDR);
- (c) recording in the implantable device TDR data representing a plurality of values of the metric of transmural dispersion of repolarization obtained at a plurality of times;
- (d) communicating said TDR data from the implantable device to the external device;
- and
- (e) comparing in the external device the TDR data with medication data representative of a medication regimen administered to said patient to identify changes in arrhythmic vulnerability associated with changes in the medication regimen.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.