JP2007260127A - Respiration measuring instrument, and sleeping condition discrimination system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a respiration measuring instrument which can distinguish and measure air currents from the right and left nostrils; and to provide a sleeping condition discrimination system which can discriminate a sleeping condition using a measured value measured by the respiration measuring instrument. <P>SOLUTION: The respiration measuring instrument 2 used for measuring respiration is provided with a left measurement part 6 for measuring information about an air current from the left nostril, and a right measurement part 7 for measuring information about an air current from the right nostril, and can measure a left nostril measured value measured by the left measurement part 6 and a right nostril measured value measured by the right measurement part 7 respectively separately. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a respiratory measurement device that measures respiration during sleep, and a sleep state determination system that determines a sleep state by measuring respiration during sleep.

  In recent years, sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) which presents various symptoms, such as somnolence during the day, has repeatedly become a problem.

  In the SAS test, the sleep state is determined by measuring the airflow by breathing, blood oxygen concentration, tracheal sound (snoring), pulse rate, chest / abdominal movement, posture, and the like. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an apnea measurement device that includes a pressure sensor that measures body movement of a subject, a thermistor as a respiration meter, and an optical sensor that measures blood oxygen saturation.

Moreover, a phenomenon called a nasal cycle (nasal cycle) in which the strength of breathing in the right and left nostrils is switched every 1 to 4 hours is known. This nasal cycle is said to be related to a circadian rhythm that regularly repeats sleep and awakening at a constant cycle, and there are reports that it is switched during multiples of the sleep cycle or REM sleep. Therefore, by measuring and analyzing the nasal cycle, the analysis result is expected to be used for the determination of the sleep state or used for the determination of the sign of SAS.
JP-A-2005-74012

  Conventionally, however, the measurement of airflow by breathing has been made by measuring and analyzing the airflow from the nose without distinguishing between the right and left nostrils, and evaluating the presence and size of breathing as a whole nose. It was. Therefore, the airflow from the right and left nostrils could not be measured separately, and the nasal cycle could not be measured.

  Therefore, in view of the above problems, the present invention is capable of distinguishing and measuring the airflow from the left and right nostrils, and determining the sleep state using the measurement values measured by the respiration measuring device. An object is to provide a possible sleep state determination system.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention of claim 1 is a respiration measuring instrument used for measuring respiration, wherein a left measuring unit for measuring information related to an air flow from the left nostril and an air flow from the right nostril A right measurement unit that measures information on the left nostril measured by the left measurement unit and a right nostril measurement measured by the right measurement unit can be measured separately.

  Thereby, since the magnitude | size and flow volume of the airflow from a right and left nostril can be measured separately on either side, it can grasp | ascertain a test subject's nasal cycle by analyzing these measured values.

  The invention of claim 2 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 1, a mouth measuring unit for measuring information relating to the airflow from the mouth is provided, and the mouth measurement value can be measured by the mouth measuring unit.

  Mouth breathing occurs when breathing through the nose due to stuffy nose etc., but mouth breathing causes snoring and SAS. According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the airflow caused by mouth breathing can be measured, the subject can be diagnosed appropriately based on the analysis result of the measured value. It can also be used to check whether mouth breathing has improved.

  The invention of claim 3 is characterized in that the sleep state is determined by comparing the measured value of the left nostril and the measured value of the right nostril measured using the respiratory measurement device of claim 1 or 2.

  This makes it possible to know the relationship between the airflow from the left nostril and the airflow from the right nostril, so the nasal cycle can be known from the analysis results, and the sleep state of the subject from the relationship between the nasal cycle and the circadian cycle Can be determined.

  The invention of claim 4 is characterized in that, in the invention of claim 3, the sleep state is determined by using at least one of the sum and difference of the left nostril measurement value and the right nostril measurement value.

  Finding the sum of the left and right nostril measurements is the same as finding the airflow measurement across the nose, and as a result of measuring the airflow across the nose, as with a conventional breathing instrument. It can fulfill the function of obtaining a value.

  Further, when the respiratory strength is generated in the right and left nostrils, the nasal cycle can be easily obtained by obtaining the difference between the measured values of the left nostril and the right nostril.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third or fourth aspect of the invention, the left nostril measurement value and the right nostril measurement value are amplitude values of information relating to airflow, and the left nostril measurement value is related to a period longer than the right nostril measurement value. The sleep state is determined by comparing the information with information regarding a period in which the right nostril measurement value is larger than the left nostril measurement value.

  The breathing state and sleep state are considered stable when the nasal cycle changes at a constant period, and otherwise unstable.

  In the invention of claim 5, using the property of the above-mentioned nasal cycle, the information regarding the period when the left nostril is good and the information regarding the period when the right nostril are good are compared and analyzed in the nasal cycle. By doing so, it is possible to determine a respiratory state or a sleep state. For example, when the period when one nostril is good is longer than the period when the other nostril is good, it is determined that there is some abnormality depending on the degree.

  The invention of claim 6 is characterized in that the sleep state is determined by comparing the left nostril measurement value, the right nostril measurement value and the mouth measurement value measured using the respirometer of claim 2. .

  According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, the mouth respiration that causes snoring and SAS can be measured by the mouth measuring unit. Therefore, the invention of claim 6 can analyze the nasal cycle when mouth breathing occurs, and can also detect an abnormality or the like that is a sign of SAS.

  Since the present invention can distinguish and measure the airflow from the right and left nostrils, it can measure the nasal cycle, and can determine the sleep state of the subject using the measured nasal cycle it can.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the sleep determination system 1 according to the present embodiment, FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram viewed from the front of a patient wearing the respiratory measurement device 2 according to the present embodiment, and FIG. It is a graph which shows the image of the temperature change of the airflow from the left nostril, the airflow from a right nostril, and the airflow from a mouth measured by the respiration measuring device 2.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the sleep state determination system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a respiratory measurement device 2 and a data processing device 3 that analyzes data measured by the respiratory measurement device 2 and determines a sleep state. ing. The respiration measuring device 2 includes a measurement unit 5, an amplifier 10, and a storage unit 11. The measurement unit 5 measures a left measurement unit 6 that measures an airflow from the left nostril and an airflow from the right nostril. It is comprised from the right measurement part 7 and the mouth measurement part 8 which measures the airflow from a mouth.

  The left measuring unit 6, the right measuring unit 7, and the mouth measuring unit 8 are provided with sensors that measure information relating to the airflow. In the present embodiment, an NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) thermistor is installed as a sensor at the tip of the measurement unit 5 in order to measure the airflow due to respiration. The resistance value of the NTC thermistor decreases as the temperature rises. When the NTC thermistor is placed in the airflow from the nose and the airflow from the mouth, the NTC thermistor has a temperature difference between the inspiration and the expiration. Changes in the resistance. The respiration measuring device 2 measures the change in resistance and stores it in the storage unit 11 as respiration data. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 3, the respiration measuring instrument 2 according to the present embodiment can measure the airflow from the left nostril, the airflow from the right nostril, and the airflow from the mouth independently.

  Moreover, in order to prevent the measurement part 5 from shifting | deviating from skin, the measurement part 5 exposes the installation part of an NTC thermistor, and is coat | covered with soft resin, and can be used closely_contact | adhered to skin. As the soft resin, a resin that does not affect the human body such as a rash is desirable. Thereby, the burden which the measurement part 5 gives to skin can be reduced.

  The amplifier 10 can freely set the measurement sensitivity by adjusting the amplification degree so that the measurement signal of the measurement unit 5 can be obtained at a sufficient level. In the present embodiment, the amplifiers 10a to 10c are installed so as to correspond to the left measurement unit 6, the right measurement unit 7, and the mouth measurement unit 8 on a one-to-one basis.

  The memory | storage part 11 is a non-volatile memory, and memorize | stores the measured value of the airflow about the left nostril, the right nostril, and the mouth which were measured by the measurement part 5, and was measured, respectively. Similarly to the amplifier 10, the storage units 11 a to 11 c are also installed in the storage unit 11 so as to correspond to the left measurement unit 6, the right measurement unit 7, and the mouth measurement unit 8 on a one-to-one basis. At this time, it is preferable to store each measurement value as a separate file.

  In the present embodiment, the measurement unit 5 of the respiratory measurement device 2 is attached between the nose and the upper lip of the subject as shown in FIG. At this time, the left measurement unit 6 is disposed in the airflow from the left nostril, the right measurement unit 7 is disposed in the airflow from the right nostril, and the mouth measurement unit 8 is disposed in the airflow from the mouth.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 1, measurement signals that are measured values of the airflow from the left nostril, right nostril and mouth measured by the measurement unit 5 are amplified by amplifiers 10a to 10c, respectively, and the left nostril, right nostril and The data is stored in the storage units 11a to 11c as mouth data.

  Since the respiration measuring instrument 2 in the present embodiment has a simple configuration as described above, it can be miniaturized. Therefore, the respiration measuring instrument 2 in this embodiment is excellent in portability, and the subject can take it home and measure respiration during sleep by himself / herself. The data stored in the storage units 11a to 11c of the respiration measuring device 2 after the respiration measuring device 2 measures the respiration during sleep of the subject overnight is a data process such as a PC in order to determine the respiration and sleep states. Input to device 3.

  In the sleep state determination system 1 according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, since the respiratory measurement device 2 and the data processing device 3 are separated, the data measured by the plurality of respiratory measurement devices 2 is stored as one data. Processing can be performed by the processing device 3. For this reason, compared with the conventional sleep state determination system in which the respirometer 2 and the data processing device 3 are integrally configured, the number of persons that can be processed is increased, and waiting for the subject who has been a conventional problem is waiting for the turn. This state can also be resolved. Note that the present invention is not limited to the configuration in which the respiratory measurement device 2 and the data processing device 3 are separated from each other, and the sleep state determination system in which the respiratory measurement device 2 and the data processing device 3 are configured integrally. 1 is also included.

  In this embodiment, the subject's nasal cycle is derived based on the input data of the left nostril and the data of the right nostril, and the determination of the breathing state and sleep state of the subject is performed. Here, the nasal cycle is a phenomenon in which the state of passage of the right and left nose is switched physiologically at a rate of once every several hours, and is a phenomenon that occurs in most normal persons. However, it does not occur in people who have had their pharynx removed. The cycle of the nasal cycle varies from person to person and is generally about 1 to 4 hours.

  Humans have a circadian rhythm called circadian rhythm that regularly repeats sleep and awakening in a period of about 25 hours. The above-mentioned nasal cycle is said to be related to this circadian rhythm, and there is also a report that the right and left nose passages are switched during sleep multiples or REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep. Therefore, if the subject's nasal cycle can be derived and analyzed, the sleep cycle of the subject can be known from the analysis result, and can be utilized for the determination of the sleep state. Here, the sleep cycle means a cycle of non-REM (Non-Rapid Eye Movement) sleep and REM sleep that appears during sleep, and there are individual differences, but about 90 minutes is common.

  In the present embodiment, the sleep state of the subject is determined by deriving and analyzing this nasal cycle. Here, the sleep state is classified into three stages of REM sleep, shallow non-REM sleep (Stage 1 + 2), and deep non-REM sleep (Stage 3 + 4) according to the state of the electroencephalogram. REM sleep refers to an awake state where the body is resting but the brain is awake, Stage 1 + 2 refers to a sleep but light sleep state, and Stage 3 + 4 refers to a deep sleep state. In the case of SAS, Stage 3 + 4 is small, and there is a lack of deep sleep, poor morning awakening, and daytime sleepiness.

  Specifically, the left nostril measurement value measured by the left measurement unit 6 and the right nostril measurement value measured by the right measurement unit 7 are compared. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the left nostril data, the right nostril data, and the mouth data input to the data processing device 3 extract a measurement signal in a frequency band corresponding to information related to the airflow caused by respiration. Therefore, each filter process is performed, and the extreme value (amplitude) is measured for each measurement value data.

  FIG. 4 is a graph comparing the amplitude value of the left nostril measurement value and the amplitude value of the right nostril measurement value. If the amplitude of the left nostril reading is larger, the left nostril is better than the right nostril. If the amplitude of the right nostril reading is larger, the right nostril is better than the left nostril. Means good.

  Moreover, the nasal cycle can be easily derived by taking the difference between the measured value of the left nostril and the measured value of the right nostril. When the breathing state and sleep state are stable, the nasal cycle is also stable, and it is considered that the strength of breathing in the right and left nostrils is switched at a constant cycle.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the data processing device 3 uses the information about the periods D1 and D3 when the left nostril measurement value is larger than the right nostril measurement value, and the right nostril measurement value is larger than the left nostril measurement value. The sleep state is determined by comparing the information regarding the large period D2.

  As the information on the period, it is conceivable that the length of the period or the integrated value of the information on the airflow is obtained and used as a reference. For example, when the period of the period length is switched within a certain error range, it is determined that the respiratory state or the sleep state is stable. In addition, when the length of one period is longer than the length of the other period beyond a certain error range, it is determined that the respiratory state or the sleep state is unstable. For example, when one period is 1.5 times longer than the other period, it can be determined that the sleeping state is abnormal. In addition, if the nasal cycle cannot be measured because there is no change in breathing strength between the left and right nostrils, or if the cycle of the nasal cycle is outside the expected range, there is some abnormality in the respiratory state or sleep state. It is determined that there are signs or not. As the cycle of the nasal cycle, for example, it is assumed that the size of the left nostril measurement value and the size of the right nostril measurement value are interchanged in a cycle of 1 to 4 hours.

  Moreover, the sum of the measured value of the left nostril and the measured value of the right nostril is synonymous with obtaining the measured value of the airflow of the entire nose. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, the respirometer 2 in the present embodiment can obtain the measurement value of the air flow of the entire nose by using the sum of the left nostril measurement value and the right nostril measurement value. It can also perform the same function as the respirometer. For example, in the measured value after the filter processing, it can be determined that apnea has occurred when an extreme value has not occurred for a predetermined period or longer. As the period, 10 to 15 seconds can be used as a reference for apnea.

  Since the respiration measuring instrument 2 in the present embodiment includes the mouth measuring unit 8, as shown in FIG. 3, it can also measure airflow caused by mouth respiration. Mouth breathing occurs when the person cannot breathe through the nose due to stuffy nose, etc., but also causes snoring and SAS. Therefore, when mouth breathing is measured by the mouth measuring unit 8, it is determined that there is a sign of snoring or SAS. In addition, the mouth measurement value measured by the mouth measurement unit 8 can be used to determine whether or not mouth breathing has been improved.

  Furthermore, in the sleep state determination system 1 according to the present embodiment, the nasal cycle derived by the left measurement unit 6 and the right measurement unit 7 and the airflow measurement value and the mouth measurement value for the entire nose are compared and analyzed. By doing so, it can also be determined whether there is an abnormality such as apnea or whether there is an indication thereof, and appropriate diagnosis can be made to the subject using these data.

  In the present embodiment, the measurement unit 5 includes a left measurement unit 6 and a right measurement unit 7 that measure the airflow from the left and right nostrils, and a mouth measurement unit 8 that measures the airflow from the mouth. The present invention also includes a respiration measuring device 2a that does not include the unit 8. In the present embodiment, the respiration measuring instrument 2 includes the storage unit 11 and the data measured by the measurement unit 5 is stored in the storage units 11a to 11c. However, the present invention is limited to such a form. It is not a thing. For example, a configuration may be adopted in which measured data is sequentially transferred to the data processing device 3 by providing communication means.

It is a block diagram of the sleep determination system which concerns on this embodiment. It is explanatory drawing which looked at the patient equipped with the respiration measuring device concerning this embodiment from the front. It is a graph which shows the image of the temperature change of the airflow from a left nostril, the airflow from a right nostril, and the airflow from a mouth measured with the respirometer. It is the graph which compared the amplitude value of the left nostril measurement value, and the amplitude value of the right nostril measurement value.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sleep state determination system 2 Respiratory measuring instrument 3 Data processing device 5 Measuring part 6 Left measuring part 7 Right measuring part 8 Mouth measuring part

Claims (6)

  A respiration measuring instrument used for measuring respiration, comprising a left measuring unit that measures information about airflow from the left nostril and a right measuring unit that measures information about airflow from the right nostril, A respiratory measurement device characterized in that a left nostril measurement value measured by a left measurement unit and a right nostril measurement value measured by a right measurement unit can be separately measured.   The respiratory measurement device according to claim 1, further comprising a mouth measurement unit that measures information related to an airflow from the mouth, wherein the mouth measurement value can be measured by the mouth measurement unit.   A sleep state determination system, wherein a sleep state is determined by comparing a left nostril measurement value and a right nostril measurement value measured using the respiratory measurement device according to claim 1 or 2.   The sleep state determination system according to claim 3, wherein the sleep state is determined using at least one of a sum and a difference between the left nostril measurement value and the right nostril measurement value.   The left nostril measurement value and the right nostril measurement value are amplitude values of the information related to the airflow, and the information regarding the period when the left nostril measurement value is larger than the right nostril measurement value and the period when the right nostril measurement value is larger than the left nostril measurement value. The sleep state determination system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the sleep state is determined by comparing the information regarding the sleep state.   A sleep state determination system characterized in that a sleep state is determined by comparing a left nostril measurement value, a right nostril measurement value, and a mouth measurement value measured using the respirometer of claim 2.

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