Patent Application
20230347047
This disclosure generally relate to the field of infusion pumps, and more particularly to the field of actuators for infusion pumps.
Infusion pumps are medical devices, often found in clinical settings such as hospitals and nursing homes, that deliver fluids in controlled amounts, such as nutrients and medications, into a patient's body. One such example of an infusion pump is a patient-actuated analgesia pump, which allows a patient, for instance post-surgery, to control the pain medication delivery themselves via a hand-held actuator. By allowing the patient to self-administer a dose at a desired time, an optimal level of pain relief may be enabled, while avoiding over or under-dosage.
However, patients requiring pain medication may have limited mobility, for instance due to a disability, or as a result of an injury. This limited mobility may prevent them from having the necessary physical faculties or dexterity to manipulate and activate the hand-held actuator of the infusion pump, for instance via the relatively small contact surface at a distal end of the actuator or on the bedside infusion pump, thus preventing them from administering their dosage. A third party individual may then be required to administer the patient's dosage, such as a family member, a friend, or a medical professional. However, these third party individuals may not be present when a dosage is needed. Therefore, improvements are needed.
In accordance with one aspect, there is provided a control system for an infusion pump, comprising: a converter electrically coupled to the infusion pump; and an actuator configured for receiving a mechanical force, and for selectively transmitting the mechanical force to the converter indicative of a patient's request for a bolus infusion; wherein the converter is configured for converting the mechanical force received from the actuator to an electrical signal transmission to the infusion pump.
In accordance with another aspect, there is provided a method for controlling the operation of an infusion pump, comprising: receiving, at a converter, a mechanical force transmitted by an actuator, the mechanical force indicative of a patient request for an bolus infusion; converting, at the converter, the mechanical force to an electrical signal transmission; and transmitting the electrical signal from the converter to the infusion pump.
Many further features and combinations thereof concerning the present improvements will appear to those skilled in the art following a reading of the instant disclosure.
Referring to
While
Referring to
In the shown embodiment, the converter 30 includes an enclosure or box 31 containing the components required to convert the fluid-based signal 50a received from the actuator 40 to an electrical signal 60a to be transmitted to the infusion pump 20. The enclosure 31 may be substantially waterproof or otherwise sealed to prevent fluids from accidentally entering its internal cavity. In such cases, the enclosure may include a door or removable panel to provide access to its internal cavity while sealing it when closed. The shown enclosure 31 may include an inlet 31A for the fluid line 50 and an outlet 31B for the electrical line 60. The enclosure 31 may further include a mount 32 for securely positioning the enclosure 31 in the vicinity of the patient and the infusion pump 20. Other mounting means for enclosure 31, for instance fasteners or adhesives, may be contemplated. In an embodiment, the enclosure 31 may be mounted to a solute pole (not shown) for the infusion pump 20. Other mounting locations for the enclosure, for instance on a recovery bed of the patient, may be contemplated.
Still referring to
The positioning and dimensions of the actuator 40 are configured for allowing patients with limited mobility to easily actuate the actuator 40 to administer a dose of their medication themselves. By limited mobility, it is understood that the patient may be unable to manipulate a typical hand or finger controlled button or actuator for a patient-controlled analgesia pump due to, for instance, a physical disability, or an injury. Other considerations may factor into a patient's limited mobility as well, for instance any temporary limitations following surgery. In some cases, a patient may simply lack the dexterity required to manipulate the small button typically found on a hand-held actuator associated with an infusion pump. As such, the actuator 40, and more particularly the user interface 41, may be positioned adjacent or within reach of one of the patient's mobile bodily parts, such as their head, their elbow, their forearm, their hand, their knee, or their foot. Other bodily parts may be contemplated.
The user interface 41 may be mounted to a recovery bed (not shown) of the patient, for instance on an inner guard rail adjacent to one of the above-mentioned bodily parts. A recovery bed may refer to, for instance, a hospital bed for a patient post-surgery. Similarly, a recovery bed may refer to a medical-type bed in a rehabilitation center, nursing home or a private residence. Other recovery bed types may be contemplated, or other patient supports may be provided with the actuator 40, such as chairs, wheelchairs, stretchers, etc. Alternatively, the user interface 41 may be mounted to a bedpost or a portion of a bedframe. The positioning of the user interface 41 may depend on the specific circumstances of each patient and the specific bodily parts they are most adept at using to actuate the actuator 40.
In some embodiments, fixing means 42 may be provided adjacent the user interface 41 or proximate the user interface 41 along the fluid line 50 (as schematically shown in
The shape and dimensions of the user interface 41 may be selected to ensure that the patient with limited mobility may successfully actuate, i.e., press, the user interface 41. The user interface 41 (and thus the actuator 40) may thus be referred to as ergonomic, as the contact surface which, when engaged, actuates the user interface 41 is large enough to be engaged by one or more of the above-mentioned bodily parts. This is in contrast to typical buttons for infusion pumps, which typically include small buttons at a distal end of an actuator that are difficult to manipulate for patients with limited mobility and can typically be only manipulated with one's fingers.
In the non-limiting example shown in
Other considerations to avoid inadvertent activation of the user interface 41, while ensuring the user interface 41 is easy to activate by a patient, may be contemplated. For instance, to activate the user interface 41, a combination of a low activation force (thereby facilitating the task of the patient) with a long stroke of movement (i.e., a long press of the interface) and/or a large surface of force may be required. In other words, the user interface 41 may require a relatively substantial displacement of fluid without substantial force to ensure that a patient will only activate the user interface 41 when such action is actually intended. This may prevent inadvertent contacts with the user interface 41 being registered as activations, as such contacts would not create sufficient displacement of fluid in the user interface 41. The depth of the user interface 41 or size of the bladder 41 may be increased to allow for this long stroke of movement or large surface of pressure, and the volume of fluid contained in the user interface 41 and/or the material of the user interface 41 may be selected to provide a low activation force for activating the user interface 41.
The user interface 41 may be configured to activate, i.e. transmit the fluid-based signal 50a to the converter 30, regardless of how the patient presses it (ex: force, speed, intensity or duration of application). The user interface 41 may be described as having a single function, i.e., bolus administration, once the user interface 41 is pressed, provided that the infusion pump 20 allows the administration according to the patient's prescription profile. This may ease the task of activating the user interface 41 for the patient given their limited mobility. In addition, in cases where the user interface 41 is configured for transmitting a pneumatic signal to the converter 30, the user interface 41 may be soft and easily pressed, easing the task of the patient as well and requiring little pressure to transmit the signal. Alternatively, the rigidity of the user interface 41 may be increased, for instance by using a stronger material and/or by replacing the air inside the user interface 41 with a liquid, to reduce the chances of accidental activation of the user interface 41. In various cases, different user interfaces 41 with different dimensions and/or rigidities may be produced based on the bodily part of the patient intended to be used with the user interface 41.
Referring additionally to
Referring additionally to
Signal converter 33 illustratively includes an air inlet 33A and electrical terminals 33B, and is disposed in a casing or holder 34 which may operatively couple and retain the signal converter 33 to the enclosure 31. Alternatively, signal converter 33 may be directly mountable inside the enclosure 31 without the need for casing 34. Air inlet 33A is fluidly coupled to a second end of the pneumatic tubing 50, which enters the enclosure 31 via inlet 31A, though the air inlet 33A may be on the exterior of the enclosure 31 as another possibility. As discussed above, signal converter 33 may include means for redirecting the fluid-based signal 50a (or directing fluid from an additional fluid source) towards the actuator 40 as an opposition force 50b after the fluid-based signal 50a is received and registered by the signal converter 33. Such means may include a bladder or diaphragm (not shown) in an inside chamber of the signal converter 33. Electrical terminals 33B are electrically connected to positive and negative wires 61, 62 forming electrical line 60, which exits the enclosure 31 via outlet 31B. A third electrical terminal 33B may be provided, for instance to act as a ground or to transmit information to another device. It is thus understood that signal converter 33 may receive a fluid-type signal or like mechanical force such as a cable pull, for instance a pneumatic pulse, at inlet 33A, convert the fluid-type signal 50a to an electrical signal 60a, and close the appropriate circuitry for the electrical signal 60a to pass through electrical terminals 33B to positive and negative wires 61, 62 forming electrical line 60. Hence, in such embodiment, the signal converter 33 is passive. In another embodiment, the signal converter 33 could include a battery and emit a signal.
The converter 30 may further include notification or alerting means 35 to alert the patient when a signal from the actuator 40 has been successfully received at the converter 30. For instance, additional circuitry (not shown) may be operatively connected to the signal converter 33 and be configured to engage the connected alerting means 35 when fluid from the fluid line 50 is received at the signal converter 33. In an embodiment, said alerting means 35 (schematically shown as being mounted to the outside of enclosure 31) may be a light-emitting device to signal to the patient that the emitted signal from the actuator 40 has been received. Other locations for the light-emitting device may be contemplated, for instance to optimize visibility for the patient. The circuitry may additionally include a capacitor, a time-delayed relay, etc to allow the light-emitting device to remain illuminated for an extended period of time after the user interface 41 has been released to ensure that the patient is given sufficient time to notice the alert. Additionally or alternatively, the alerting means 35 may include a speaker or other sound emitting device operatively connected to the additional circuitry to audibly alert the patient that their signal has been received. This sound emitting device may, for instance, be disposed inside the enclosure 31. Other notification or alerting means, for instance a vibrating device operatively connected to the patient recovery bed, may be contemplated.
While
Referring to
It can be appreciated from the foregoing that at least some embodiments of the present disclosure include a control system for an infusion pump including an ergonomic actuator for selectively transmitting a fluid-based signal indicative of a patient's request for a bolus infusion to a pneumatic-electronic converter which transmits an electronic signal to the infusion pump, thereby allowing a patient with limited mobility to self-regulate the dosage of their medication. The patient may control the delivery of medication, for instance pain medication, based on their own judgement of their needs, for instance their current level of pain. The dosage of such medication may thus be better synchronized with the needs of the patient.
As can be seen therefore, the examples described above and illustrated are intended to be exemplary only. The scope is indicated by the appended claims.
