JP6066637B2 - System for monitoring the physiological status of multiple infants - Google Patents

Description

  The present disclosure relates to the field of infant monitoring. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to monitoring neonatal stress indicators.

  Stress is physiologically undesirable in newborns. Increasing the stress level causes the newborn to consume extra calories and cause a stress response. This extra caloric consumption translates into caloric consumption from basic and developmental efforts essential to the survival of the newborn.

  Detecting the neonate's physiological status to stress response may provide additional diagnostic tools to the physician, leading to physician intervention or response orientation.

  A system for monitoring the physiological status of multiple infants in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). The system includes a plurality of infant treatment stations, each of which includes a microenvironment, and each infant therapy station includes an environmental detector that detects a first environmental condition of the microenvironment. The system includes a plurality of external environment detectors disposed around the NICU, each of the external environment detectors being adapted to detect a second environmental condition of the NICU outside the microenvironment. The system also includes a central processing unit communicatively connected to each of the environmental detectors and to each of the external environmental detectors. The central processing unit compares the signal from the environmental detector with the signal from the external environmental detector, and between each first environmental state of the microenvironment and the second environmental state of the NICU outside the microenvironment. To determine the correlation.

  A system for monitoring the physiological status of multiple infants in an infant treatment facility. The system includes a plurality of infant treatment stations, each infant treatment station being configured to monitor and treat a newborn. Each infant treatment station includes a micro-environment, a motion detector disposed around the micro-environment for detecting the infant's movement, an environment detector for detecting a first environmental state of the micro-environment, and an infant detection And a processor that receives the exercise and the first environmental condition and extracts an indicator of the infant's stress level. The system includes a plurality of external environment detectors positioned around an infant treatment station that detects a second environmental condition outside the microenvironment. The system includes a central processing unit communicatively connected to each of the infant treatment stations and to each of the external environmental detectors. The central processing unit compares the signal from each of the infant treatment stations with the signal from the external environment detector, and each first environmental state of the microenvironment, a second environmental state outside the microenvironment, and the infant Determine the correlation between the corresponding indicators of the stress level.

  A method for monitoring the status of a plurality of infants in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) including a plurality of microenvironments. The method includes detecting movement of a plurality of infants using a motion detector disposed in each of the plurality of microenvironments. The method includes monitoring a first environmental condition in each of the microenvironments. The method includes monitoring a second environmental condition outside the plurality of microenvironments. The method includes extracting a stress level indicator for each of the plurality of infants based on the respective movements of the plurality of infants. The method includes displaying on the graphic display a representation of the second environmental state, a representation of the first environmental state, and a representation of an indicator of the stress level.

1 is an environmental diagram of an embodiment of a system for monitoring an infant's physiological condition. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a system for monitoring the status of a plurality of infants. 4 is an exemplary graph of detected motion and monitored physiological parameters. 4 is an exemplary graph of detected motion and monitored physiological parameters. FIG. 6 is an exemplary graph of detected motion, physiological parameters, and environmental conditions. FIG. 6 is an exemplary graph of detected motion, physiological parameters, and environmental conditions. 2 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method for monitoring an infant's physiological condition. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for monitoring an infant's physiological condition. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system for monitoring the physiological status of multiple infants. FIG. 3 is an exemplary graph of a physiological signal, a motion detector signal, an environmental signal, and an external environmental signal. 3 is an exemplary graph of a physiological signal, a motion detector signal, an environmental signal, and an external environmental signal. It is the schematic display figure of the display which showed the correlation between an infant's stress level, an environmental state, and an external environmental state.

  FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a system 10 for monitoring the physiological state of an infant 12. Infant treatment station 14 includes a generally horizontal surface 16 that supports the infant. The microenvironment 18 in which the infant 12 is placed is at least partially defined by a horizontal surface 16 and at least one wall 20. At least one wall 20 may be moveable or otherwise include an arm port 22. The movable wall 20 or arm port 22 allows the physician 24 to access the infant 12.

  The infant treatment station 14 exemplarily described and illustrated herein is a combined infant treatment station with a movable canopy disclosed in more detail. An example of this infant treatment station 14 is OmniBed available from the General Electric Company. However, it will be appreciated that in alternative embodiments, the infant treatment station 14 may be any of a variety of infant treatment station structures including, but not limited to, an incubator, a radiant warmer, and a bassinet. Should. Each of these infant treatment station embodiments defines a microenvironment for the infant, at least by a generally horizontal surface and wall.

  Microenvironment 18 is coordinated by infant treatment station 14 to manage environmental conditions such as temperature and medical gas concentration within microenvironment 18. One common environmental condition managed at the infant treatment station 14 is temperature. The temperature of the microenvironment 18 and the infant 12 is managed in one or a combination of ways. The canopy 26 is adjustable in a direction perpendicular to the infant 12 and the horizontal plane 16. The canopy 26 includes a radiant heater that emits downward heat onto the infant 12 and the horizontal surface 16. A convection heater 28 is disposed in the base 30 of the infant treatment station 14. The convection heater 28 draws in ambient air, heats the ambient air with a heating coil (not shown) or other heating element, and blows the heated air into the micro environment 18.

  The infant treatment station 14 includes an adjustable column base 32 that allows the horizontal surface 16 to be adjusted vertically. The infant treatment station 14 further includes a caster 34. This allows the infant treatment station 14 to be moved so that the infant treatment station 14 can be moved to a desired location for receiving and treating the infant. Alternatively, the infant treatment station 14 can also be used to move the infant 12 from one location to another.

  Infant treatment station 14 includes various detectors and outputs that facilitate treating and treating infant 12 by physician 24. In the exemplary embodiment, infant treatment station 14 includes one or more physiological transducers 36. Physiological transducer 36 obtains physiological parameters from infant 12. The physiological parameter acquired by the physiological transducer 36 may be a biopotential such as, but not limited to, an electrocardiograph (ECG), an electromyograph (EMG), and an electroencephalograph (EEG). Alternatively, the physiological parameter obtained by the physiological transducer may be other types of physiological values, such as oxygen saturation (SPO2) or blood pressure obtained non-invasively (NIBP). It will be appreciated that other physiological parameters can be obtained by the physiological transducer 36, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

  The infant treatment station 14 processes the physiological parameters obtained by the physiological transducer 36 and presents the physiological values to the physician 24 on a graphic display 38. Although the graphic display 38 is illustratively shown as being part of or integral with the canopy 26, various graphic displays 38 and display locations will be understood by those skilled in the art. As such, it should be recognized that it can be used within the infant treatment station 14.

  Embodiments of the system 10 include one or more environmental detectors 40. Examples of the environment detector 40 are a sound detector 42 and a light detector 44. The sound detector 42 measures ambient sounds in the micro environment 18. In some embodiments, the sound detector 42 measures the sound level in decibels. The sound picked up by the sound detector may be due to mechanical operation of the infant treatment station 14, due to intervention by the physician 24, or from ambient sounds outside the infant treatment station 14.

  The light detector 44 detects ambient light of the microenvironment 18 and measures light emission in lumen units. The light detected by the light detector 44 may be due to one or more external devices (not shown) used with the infant treatment station 14 to monitor or treat the condition of the infant 12. Alternatively, the ambient light of the microenvironment 18 monitored by the light detector 44 is from a light source outside the infant treatment station 14. Further, some embodiments of the canopy 26 include one or more lights (not shown) that can be actuated by the physician 24 to specifically allow the physician 12 to enhance the lighting. . All of these source lights or other source lights are captured and registered by the photodetector 44.

  The system 10 further includes a plurality of motion detectors 46. The motion detector 46 may be any of a variety of motion detection implementations. A first non-limiting example of motion detector 46 is a digital video capture device, such as a video camera. In a more specific embodiment, the video camera is a charge coupled device (CCD) and can operate in one or more of the visible, ultraviolet, or infrared light spectra. In an alternative embodiment, the motion detector 46 projects a beam, such as a laser, and receives the beam using an optical transducer (not shown) opposite the motion detector 46, but obtained by the optical transducer. When there is no signal, the destruction of the beam is detected. In yet another embodiment, motion detector 46 “paints” the object with electromagnetic energy, such as a laser, and receives the reflected electromagnetic energy from infant 12. This reflex is used to determine the position of the infant 12.

  In an embodiment of the system 10, a plurality of motion detectors are disposed around the microenvironment 18. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a plurality of motion detectors 46 can be arranged in a motion detector array 48. In embodiments, the array 48 extends along the length of the infant 12 or horizontal surface 16. Alternatively, the motion detector 46 can be positioned within the canopy 26 and can be directed downwardly into the microenvironment 18 and the infant 12.

  It will be noted that the number of motion detectors 46 used depends in part on the specific motion detection technique used. For example, if the motion detector 46 is a video camera, embodiments may only require one camera. Alternatively, laser or other electromagnetic energy based motion detectors may require multiple detectors to detect various infant movements.

  FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a system 50 for monitoring the status of a plurality of infants 52. Each infant 52 of the plurality of infants is placed in an infant treatment device 54. The infant treatment apparatus 54 may illustratively be the infant treatment station 14 described with reference to FIG.

  Infant treatment device 54 defines a microenvironment 56 around infant 52. Each of the infant treatment devices 54 further includes at least one environmental detector 58 and at least one motion detector 60 disposed about the microenvironment 56. Embodiments of at least one environment detector 58 can include one or a combination of one or both of a light detector 62 and a sound detector 64. The light detector 62 and sound detector 64 may be similar to those described above with respect to FIG. The at least one environmental detector 58 monitors the environmental condition of the microenvironment 56, illustratively the lighting of the microenvironment 56 or the sound level of the microenvironment 56. At least one motion detector 60 detects the motion of the infant 52 in the micro environment 56. In yet another embodiment, the at least one motion detector 60 can further detect the physician's motion during the intervention of the infant 52 in the microenvironment 56. Such intervention may be to regulate, treat or diagnose infant 52.

  Outputs from the environment detector 58 and the motion detector 60 are supplied to a processing device 66 that is a component of the infant treatment station 54. The processing device 66 receives signals from at least one environment detector 58 and at least one motion detector 60 and performs initial signal processing on the received signals. The processing unit 66 can operate a graphic display (not shown) that shows the detected environmental conditions and infant movements within the microenvironment 56 locally. An example of such a display is provided in more detail with respect to FIG.

  Each processing unit 66 of the infant treatment station 54 provides the monitored environmental conditions and infant movement to the central processing unit 68. The central processing unit 68 is communicably connected to each of the processing units 66 of the infant treatment station 54. In the exemplary embodiment of system 50, central processing unit 68 is a hospital information server communicatively connected to each of infant treatment stations 54 through the hospital internet. In that embodiment, each infant treatment station 54 may be located in the same room, such as a neonatal ward or a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Each infant treatment station 54 can communicate with the in-hospital internet and central processing unit 68 via a wired or wireless communication connection. In yet another embodiment, the infant treatment stations 54 are remotely located from each other and transmit monitored environmental conditions and infant movements to the central processing unit 68 over the Internet.

  Central processing unit 68 is further communicatively connected to computer readable medium 70. In the exemplary embodiment, computer readable medium 70 is read only memory (ROM), such as FLASH memory, but those skilled in the art will appreciate that alternative forms of computer readable medium may be used within the scope of this disclosure. You will understand.

  Computer readable medium 70 is programmed with computer readable code executed by central processing unit 68 so that central processing unit 68 operates as disclosed herein. In an alternative embodiment, computer readable medium 70 is an integral part of central processing unit 68 rather than a separate component communicatively connected to central processing unit 68.

  Central processing unit 68 is operative to receive signals from environment detectors 58 and signals from motion detectors 60 obtained by each of processing units 66. The central processing unit analyzes the environmental detector signal and the motion detector signal received from each of the infant treatment stations 54 for comparison. This intersection to the infant analysis provides additional information about the environmental conditions experienced for each infant treatment station 54 and the resulting stress level of each infant 52 at the infant treatment station 54. Central processing unit 68 determines the correlation between environmental conditions and infant stress levels.

  In the exemplary embodiment, the environment detector signal indicates an environmental change associated with the physician interacting with one of the infants 52. These environmental changes may include turning on the NICU or introducing noise into the NICU. Changes in light and noise can cause increased stress levels in other infants in the NICU who are not receiving intervention. Identifying this remaining increase in stress level in infants 52 who have not received physician intervention may prompt a change in procedure for physician intervention in an attempt to reduce the stress level experienced by other infants 52 There is sex.

  In an alternative embodiment, the infant treatment station 54 in the system 50 can be physically located in multiple rooms. It is possible to compare environmental detector signals and infant stress levels between infants 52 in different rooms for the purpose of identifying environmental status indicators in one of the rooms causing greater infant stress. is there. Identifying these adverse environmental conditions can result in physician efforts to reduce the impact or presence of these conditions and, therefore, to reduce the stress level of infants in certain rooms.

  The central processing unit 68 is communicably connected to the graphic display 72 and operates it. The graphic display shows the received environmental conditions and the infant stress level. The graphic display 72 further operates to show a determined correlation between environmental conditions and infant stress levels.

  In an alternative embodiment of system 50, each infant treatment station 54 further includes one or more physiological detectors 74. The physiological detector 74 obtains physiological data from the infant 52. The physiological data may be any of a variety of known physiological data including, but not limited to, biopotential, SPO2, NIBP, or respiratory rate. In this exemplary embodiment, the central processing unit 68 receives a physiological detector signal from each of the processing units 66 of the infant treatment station 54, and the physiological detector signal is further used in determining the infant stress level. Is done.

  3A and 3B show exemplary graphs of physiological detector signals and motion detector signals. 3 and 3B both include a SPO2 graph 76, a heart rate graph 78, and a respiratory rate graph 80. FIG. In addition, FIGS. 3A and 3B include a graph of detected exercise intensity 82.

  Figures 3A and 3B show the response of two separate infants to the detected physician intervention. Graphs 3A and 3B show the three phases in monitoring infant stress levels. In a first phase 84, baseline infant exercise intensity is determined. Of course, babies are living creatures and therefore will exhibit some voluntary and involuntary movement. Examples of innate infant exercise may include breathing or other spontaneous movements or gestures. Indeed, the lack of a minimum threshold level of exercise in some embodiments is interpreted as a patient risk factor.

  Next, reference 86 indicates an increase in exercise intensity associated with the physician intervention. The physician's intervention into the microenvironment is captured by the infant therapy device's motion detector and is therefore registered as a period of high intensity or highly variable motion. As the motion detection system is improved, one embodiment further identifies interactions with the infant by the physician. Such systems can use pattern recognition to identify physician interactions. This interaction, once identified, can be recorded in the infant's electronic medical records.

  The final phase is the recovery phase 88, where the exercise intensity graph 82 should return to the baseline exercise level. Once the additional exercise intensity detected during the doctor's intervention has ended, the exercise intensity detected during the recovery phase 88 is attributed to exercise by the infant. Infant exercise may correlate with the infant stress levels described herein. Infants may be stressed by various voluntary and involuntary movements. Infants, even premature infants, exhibit startle reflexes, which are specifically indicated by facial spasms in the eyes or mouth. These identified facial spasms are indicative of such startle response and increased infant stress. Another stress action is a leg-stretching action in the sense that an infant pushes the leg straight. The infant's hip joint tends to spread slightly outward and push any kind of urn or other structure that may be near the feet and legs.

  A further action that indicates infant stress is the lateral extension of the infant's arm. Premature infants often do not have the energy, strength, or adjustment to pull the buttocks back into a comfortable position, for example toward the median plane. When an infant cannot return his arm to this comfortable position, the infant may show finger spread by moving his / her finger to stretch or release. Thus, finger spread is a further indicator of infant stress level. As mentioned earlier, infant stress levels need not be determined solely by overall exercise intensity. In an alternative embodiment, pattern recognition to identify one or more of these described infant movements can be used to identify the infant's level of stress.

  With reference to FIGS. 3A and 3B, yet another embodiment analyzes both the infant's exercise intensity as well as changes in the infant's physiological parameters in diagnosing the infant's stress level.

  In FIG. 3A, it can be seen that during physician intervention 86, the infant shows an increase in exercise intensity combined with an increase in respiratory rate 80 and heart rate 78. These increases are combined with the decrease in the SPO2 graph 76. All these trends indicate an increase in infant stress. Since each of these indicators is consistent with the physician's dialogue 86, it can be determined that the dialogue itself is causing stress to the infant. However, during the recovery phase 88, exercise intensity 82, respiratory rate 80, and heart rate 78 are all lowered to the level seen in the baseline phase 84 and returned. Similarly, the SPO2 graph 76 continues to rise throughout the recovery phase 88 until the SPO2 graph 76 reaches the pre-intervention level. Thus, FIG. 3A is an exemplary embodiment of physiologic and exercise intensity values that can be observed during a normal or desired stress response to a physician intervention.

  The graph of FIG. 3A is compared to the graph seen in FIG. 3B, and the infant shows some recovery in the respiratory rate graph 80, specifically during the recovery phase 88, while after the physician interaction 86, the exercise intensity The graph 82 remains high. Similarly, heart rate graph 78 and SPO2 graph 76 cannot return to their respective pre-intervention levels during recovery phase 88. Thus, this stress response seen in FIG. 3B exemplifies an infant experiencing an increase in stress level after a physician intervention.

  As shown in FIG. 3B, by using the graphic display 72 of FIG. 2 to display an illustrative increase in infant stress level, the physician can inspect the infant to diagnose the cause of further stress in the infant. May be inspired. Such additional stress may be the result of infant positioning or the result of treatment initiated during the physician's intervention. As a non-limiting example, stress can result from a false IV, catheter, or rapid infusion rate.

  4A and 4B similarly illustrate exemplary outputs of signals acquired by the infant treatment station. Note that similar reference numbers between FIGS. 3 and 4 are used to indicate similar physiological variable graphs. One of the differences between the graphs of FIGS. 3 and 4 is that FIGS. 4A and 4B further include an environmental condition detector graph, namely a light intensity graph 90 and a volume graph 92. The graph of FIG. 4A and the graph of FIG. 4B provide an exemplary embodiment showing a change in infant exercise intensity 82 and an overall increase in stress level in response to changes in environmental conditions.

  In FIG. 4A, the light intensity graph 90 shows two periods in which the light intensity has increased. These two cycles of increased light intensity may illustratively be due to the doctor entering the NICU and turning on the light to interact with one or more of the infants. In this example, the infant being monitored can also be considered not to be the infant with whom the doctor interacted. The detected sound level 92 remains relatively constant throughout the monitored time period.

  The infant shows a normal or characteristic response in the exercise intensity 82, respiratory rate 80, heart rate 78, and SPO2 76 graphs to the light intensity increase in the first period 94. This may indicate a startle response or other disruption to the infant caused by the light of the NICU. Once the light is turned off, the infant enters a recovery cycle and exercise intensity 82, respiratory rate 80, heart rate 78, and SPO2 76 all return to the previous baseline level.

  In the second period 96, when the light intensity is increased, the infant does not show the same response. Conversely, even after the external stimulus of light intensity has been removed, the infant's SPO2 76 remains lowered while the infant's exercise intensity 82, respiratory rate 80, and heart rate 78 remain elevated. . These indicate that the infant is experiencing additional or ongoing stress. The coincident beginning of the second photoperiod 96 and the infant's inverse response provides a correlation between this event and the infant's condition. Thus, it can be determined that exposure to light led to stress on the infant, although not previously when exposed to light.

  FIG. 4B illustrates yet another exemplary embodiment of a graph of a condition monitored by an infant treatment station. One possible scenario that the graph shown in FIG. 4B would result would be a physician interacting with an infant during the physician intervention phase 86. To interact with the infant, the physician enters the NICU and turns on the light, resulting in an increase in intensity in the light intensity graph 90. Similarly, interaction between the physician and the infant can result in an increase in the noise of the NICU, which is shown in the volume graph 92. Such a procedure can illustratively be a catheter insertion or imaging performed on a baby by a physician, or other procedure, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

  After the end of the dialogue between the doctor and the infant, the noise from the dialogue is easily removed and the doctor turns off the NICU light. Shortly thereafter, the noise level rises again at 98 in the NICU. This may illustratively be due to one of the other infants in the NICU crying or due to the operation or failure of a mechanical device in the NICU. During the recovery phase 88, a correlation between the increase in noise at 98 and the infant's poor recovery identified by the exercise intensity graph 82 can be identified. In addition to the infant's increase in exercise intensity, the infant's breathing rate 80 and heart rate 78 remain elevated while the infant's SPO2 76 continues to fall. Only after the noise 98 is removed, the infant's measured parameters begin to return to normal. Accordingly, the exemplary graphs seen in FIGS. 3A-4B illustrate various scenarios of detected infant stress levels.

  FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of a method 100 for monitoring an infant's physiological condition. The method 100 begins at 102, at which time infant movement is detected. As described above with respect to FIGS. 1 and 2, infant movement can be detected in a variety of ways, including video capture or other uses of electromagnetic energization.

  At 104, the infant's baseline motion is extracted. As described with respect to FIGS. 3 and 4, the infant will perform various voluntary and involuntary movements, as different infants may show varying degrees of movement in their normal state. A baseline will be established for each individual infant.

  At 106, the onset or change of auxiliary parameters is monitored. The auxiliary parameter may be any of the parameters that have been described herein or will be understood by those skilled in the art. The auxiliary parameter may be a physiological parameter such as, but not limited to, SPO2, heart rate, respiratory rate, or blood pressure. Alternatively, the auxiliary parameter may be an environmental condition described herein, such as light intensity or noise volume. Yet another example of an auxiliary parameter may indicate a physician's procedure or other interaction, such as a notation found in an infant's electronic medical record. At 106, one or more of these auxiliary parameters are monitored to detect the onset or change of one or more of these parameters. Examples of the onset of these parameter changes are shown in the examples seen in FIGS. 3A-4B.

  After the start or change of the auxiliary parameter is detected at 106, then at 108, the infant's movement after the start or change of the auxiliary parameter is monitored. Infant's movement is detected by the above-disclosed movement detector.

  At 110, the infant's stress level is extracted from the infant's monitored exercise. As described above, the infant stress level can be extracted by diagnosing exercise intensity, or it can be extracted by diagnosing pattern matching to identify a particular type of infant movement. Non-limiting examples of certain types of infant movement that show increased stress include facial spasm, foot brace, or finger spread. Further, as described above with respect to FIGS. 3A-4B, a combination of infant movement diagnosis and one or more of the auxiliary parameters can also be used to extract the infant's stress level. . Furthermore, a combination of increased exercise intensity and physiological signs such as increased heart rate or respiratory rate or decreased SPO2 indicates that the infant is under stress.

  FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a system 200 for monitoring the physiological state of the infant 12. Many of the components of system 200 are identical to those described above with respect to FIG. Common reference numerals are used to identify identical components between the system 200 of FIG. 6 and the system 10 of FIG. The components described above with respect to FIG. 1 will not be described in detail with respect to FIG.

  System 200 includes several external environment detectors. According to certain embodiments, external environment detectors can include a motion detector 202, a light intensity detector 204, a sound detector 206, and a room temperature detector 208. External environment detectors 202, 204, 206 and 208 are similar to the sensing techniques and environment detector 58 (shown in FIG. 2) used to detect environmental conditions within the microenvironment 56 (shown in FIG. 2). It is possible to use technology. However, the external environment detector acquires data from a region outside the micro environment 56. External environment detectors 202, 204, 206, and 208 are mounted on the canopy 26 of the infant treatment station 14 according to an embodiment. However, the external environment detectors 202, 204, 206, and 208 may be attached to various parts of the infant treatment station 14, or according to other embodiments, to other locations within the NICU, such as walls or ceilings. It may be attached. In embodiments where the NICU includes multiple rooms, it may be advantageous to have an external environment detector per room so that the physician 24 compares the external environmental conditions experienced at each infant treatment station. It becomes possible.

  FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a system 210 for monitoring the physiological status of a plurality of infants 52. Each infant 52 of the plurality of infants is placed in an infant treatment station. The infant treatment station may illustratively be the infant treatment station 212 described with reference to FIG. Many of the components of system 210 are identical to those described above with respect to system 50 shown in FIG. Common reference numerals are used to identify identical components between FIG. 7 and FIG. The components described above with respect to FIG. 2 will not be described in detail with respect to FIG.

  The system 210 also includes a plurality of external environment detectors 214 connected to the processing device 66. The external environment detector 214 can include a motion detector 216, a light intensity detector 218, and a sound detector 220. Other embodiments may include various external environment detectors. For example, other parameters including atmospheric pressure, vibration level, room temperature, and humidity are in addition to the motion, light, and sound measured by motion detector 216, light intensity detector 218, and sound detector 220, respectively, or They can be measured instead.

  External environment detector 214 is shown communicatively connected to processing device 66 within each of the infant treatment stations 212. However, according to other embodiments, the external environment detector 214 can be communicatively connected to a central processing unit 68 instead of the processing unit 66 associated with each of the infant treatment stations 212. According to any embodiment, the central processing unit 68 compares the signal from the external environment detector 214 with the signal from the environment detectors 62, 64. The processing device 66 also receives signals from the motion detector 60 that detects infant movement at each of the infant treatment stations 212. As described above, both the light detector 62 and the sound detector 64 detect the internal environmental state of the microenvironment 56, while the external environment detector 214 is outside the microenvironment 56. An environmental condition inside the NICU is detected. Central processing unit 68 can compare and correlate signals from environment detectors 62, 64 and external environment detector 214.

  8A and 8B are exemplary graphs of physiological signals, motion detector signals, environmental signals, and external environmental signals for two infants at different infant treatment stations located at different locations within a NICU. Is shown. 8A and 8B both include an external light graph 240, a light graph 242, a SPO2 graph 244, a heart rate graph 246, a respiration rate graph 248, and an exercise graph 250, according to an exemplary embodiment. . The external light graph 240 is acquired by the external environment detector, while the light graph 242 is acquired by the environmental detector.

  In phase 252, the infants of both FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are in a low stress state, as shown by SPO2 graph 244, heart rate graph 246, respiratory rate graph 248, and exercise graph 250. During phase 254, the infants in both FIGS. 8A and 8B show signs that indicate higher stress levels. For example, the SPO2 level falls, the heart rate and the breathing rate both rise, and both infants experience the higher level of exercise shown by the exercise graph 250. During phase 256, both infants continue to exhibit higher levels of stress as indicated by higher levels of exercise, higher heart rate, and higher respiratory rate.

  In FIG. 8A, both the external light graph 240 and the light graph 242 show a sharp rise during the transition from phase 252 to phase 254. This may easily correspond to the doctor turning on the light in part of the NICU, or from ambient light from another source capable of reaching the infant's microenvironment as shown in FIG. 8A. There is also a case. Both the external light graph 240 and the light graph 242 follow each other, which means that the external light is at least one of the stressors that may be involved in an infant experiencing a higher level of stress. You can show that there is. In FIG. 8A, the infant maintains a higher level of stress, as the phase 256 shows, even after the stressor, ie, the light has been removed.

  Referring to FIG. 8B, the light graph 242, the SPO2 graph 244, the heart rate graph 246, the respiration rate graph 248, and the exercise graph 250 all show a trend generally similar to the graph shown in FIG. 8A. However, the external light graph 240 is very different between FIG. 8A and FIG. The external light graph of FIG. 8B does not move from the baseline level. However, as the light graph 242 shows, there is still light in the microenvironment. Infants show an increase in stress levels in response to the light shown in the light graph 242. However, since there is no external light, the light source that is confusing the infant is likely to be different from the light source that is confusing the infant in FIG. 8A. For example, the light source that provides the light graph 242 may be from a light stored in an infant treatment station intended to illuminate the infant.

  Even though the responses by the infants of FIGS. 8A and 8B are very similar, the central processor 68 (shown in FIG. 7) may perform another correlation based on the data displayed in FIGS. 8A and 8B. Will be able to. For example, the data used to create the graph of FIG. 8A shows the correlation between the external light graph 240 and the light graph 242 with the onset of an increase in the infant's stress level. The similarity between the external light graph 240 and the light graph 242 means that external light is the most likely stressor of the stressors involved in increasing the infant's stress response. In comparison, FIG. 8B shows that the light that is visible in the microenvironment has been switched on, as is apparent in phase 254 of the light graph 242. However, there is no change in the external light graph 240 in phase 254. Thus, the central processing unit 68 can determine that an increase in the infant's stress level is correlated with light that is visible from inside the microenvironment but not from external light at the NICU. become.

  Acquiring signals from external environmental detectors about the environmental conditions of the NICU surrounding the infant treatment station helps one or more physicians accurately identify the stressors that affect various infants. Based on these data, physicians can modify routines and behaviors to minimize the level of stress experienced by NICU infants. The example shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B is relatively simple because it includes only a signal from one external detector, the external photodetector. However, by using the data from the external light detector, the central processing unit can be used between the external light level of FIG. 8A and the stress level for the infant, and between the light level of FIG. 8B and the stress level for the infant. Correlation can be performed. Without external detector data, the physician cannot effectively remove the stressor. Based on data from the exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, the physician modifies the condition of the NICU to reduce the external light of the NICU by the infant associated with FIG. 8A and the infant associated with FIG. 8B. It is possible to suppress light in the microenvironment. These two babies may be located elsewhere in the NICU, or even in another room, so additional details from one or more external environmental detectors It will ease the burden and create a lower stress environment for the infant, which may be important to increase the survival rate and long-term health of preterm infants.

  While the exemplary embodiments described herein above use data from only one type of external environment detector, other embodiments may include various types of external environment detectors or multiple external environments. It should be appreciated that a detector can be included. Since the correlation performed by the central processing unit 68 (shown in FIG. 7) may not immediately reveal which external environmental conditions are responsible for increasing the stress level of a given infant, It is even more important when dealing with further changes. As described above, the central processing unit 68 can determine the infant's stress level by analyzing the infant's physiological parameters and movements. In accordance with the illustrative embodiment, the central processing unit 68 can correlate the period during which the infant's stress level increases with signals from both the external environment detector 214 and the environment detector. The central processing unit 68 then provides specific data to the physician regarding which of the environmental conditions or external environmental conditions is most highly correlated with a given infant's high stress level at a particular infant treatment station. It becomes possible to provide. The physician can then modify his behavior and / or environment within the NICU to reduce the stress experienced by each of the infants as much as possible.

  FIG. 9 illustrates an embodiment of a display 300 that can be used to communicate the correlation between infant stress levels at various locations and environmental conditions within the NICU. Display 300 can be viewed in a graphic display, such as graphic display 72 shown in FIG. The display 300 includes an infant treatment station identifier 302 that links each set of data to a particular infant treatment station located within the NICU. Although display 300 shows nine infant treatment stations, other embodiments may include various numbers of infant treatment stations. The infant treatment station appears on the display 300 in a layout similar to the layout used in the NICU to help the physician more easily identify additional relationships between the stressor and a particular infant treatment station. Can be placed. According to other embodiments, data from all infant treatment stations can be arranged in other orientations.

  Display 300 includes data displayed as an index. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 9, the index may include a numerical measure that indicates the relative strength of each parameter or environmental condition. Display 300 includes a stress level index 304, a light index 306, an external sound index 308, and an external light index 310. By comparing indexes at each infant treatment station, doctors can easily determine which infants are experiencing high stress levels and which stressors are most likely to be responsible for those high stress levels Can be determined. Although the exemplary embodiment includes a numerical index, other embodiments may use other forms of index, including color or position, in the display 300. Other embodiments can use a combination of indices, such as numbers or colors, to more clearly identify stressors or infant treatment stations that have higher stress levels than desired.

  For example, looking at the value of the external light index 310, the infant treatment station 2 has the value 9, while the treatment stations 1 and 3 have the value 8. The value of the external light index decreases with distance from the infant treatment station 2. Based on this correlation, the physician may be able to determine that the source of external light is causing at least some stress on the infant located near the infant treatment station 2. Similarly, it is possible to determine similar relationships by observing the value of the external sound index 308. The value of the external sound index 308 is highest near the bed 7 and decreases as the bed 7 moves away. Based on this correlation, the physician may be able to determine that the source of the sound is near the infant treatment station 7. According to another embodiment, the central processing unit 68 may be able to determine the correlation between the various stressors and each of the infant treatment stations. For example, the central processing unit 68 may identify one or more environmental conditions and / or one or more external environmental conditions that are positively correlated with a particular infant's stress level. The central processing unit 68 may be configured to identify a suspicious location of a particular environmental stressor based on signals received from the environmental detector and the external environmental detector, according to an embodiment. The central processing unit 68 can display these correlations on a graphic display 72 (shown in FIG. 6).

  Embodiments of the systems and methods disclosed herein allow for improved infant status display by diagnosing infant stress levels. Increasing stress levels can reduce the positive prognosis of premature infants. Accordingly, physician interaction and newborn status can be improved by monitoring and reporting the status of the infant in the manner described herein.

  This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to make and use any device or system and perform any incorporated methods. Thus, those skilled in the art can implement the present invention. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are equivalent if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal wording of the claims, or they do not differ substantially from the literal wording of the claims. Even if it contains structural elements, it is intended to be within the scope of the claims.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 System 12 Infant 14 Infant treatment device 16 Horizontal surface 18 Micro environment 20 Wall 22 Arm port 24 Doctor 26 Canopy 28 Convection heater 30 Base 32 Adjustable column base 34 Caster 36 Physiological transducer 38 Graphic display 40 Environment detector 42 Sound detector 44 optical detector 46 motion detector 48 motion detector array 50 system 52 infant 54 infant treatment station 56 micro environment 58 environment detector 60 motion detector 62 light detector 64 sound detector 66 processor 68 central processing unit 70 computer readable Medium 72 Graphic display 74 Physiological detector 76 SPO2 graph 78 Heart rate graph 80 Respiration rate graph 82 Exercise intensity graph 84 Baseline motor phase 86 Doctor intervention phase 88 Recovery phase 90 Light intensity Graph 92 volume graph 94 first light period 96 second light period 98 second noisy period 100 method 102 step 104 step 106 step 108 step 110 step 200 system 202 motion detector 204 light intensity detector 206 sound detection 208 Room temperature detector 210 System 212 Infant treatment device 214 External environment detector 216 Motion detector 218 External environment detector 220 Sound detector 240 External light graph 242 Light graph 244 SPO2 graph 246 Heart rate graph 248 Respiration rate Graph 250 movement graph 252 first phase 254 phase 256 phase 300 display 302 infant treatment station identifier 304 stress level index 306 light index 308 external sound index 3 10 External light index

Claims (8)

In a system (210) for monitoring the physiological status of multiple babies in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU),
A plurality of infant treatment stations (212), each infant treatment station (212) being configured to monitor and treat a newborn, wherein each infant treatment station (212) includes a microenvironment (56) and A motion detector (202) disposed around the micro environment (56) for detecting the infant's motion, and an environment detector (40) for detecting a first environmental state of the micro environment (56). A plurality of infant treatment stations (212), and a processing device (66) for receiving the detected movement of the infant and the first environmental condition and extracting an indicator of the infant's stress level;
A plurality of external environmental detectors (214) positioned around the infant treatment station (212) for detecting a second environmental condition outside the microenvironment (56);
A central processing unit (68) communicatively connected to each of the infant treatment stations (212) and to each of the external environment detectors (214), from each of the infant treatment stations (212) Is compared with the signal from the external environment detector (214), and the first environmental state of the microenvironment (56) and the second environmental state outside the microenvironment (56). And a central processing unit (68) for determining a correlation between the infant and the corresponding indicator of the stress level of the infant;
A system (210) comprising: The environment detection unit (40) is a sound detector and an optical detector or we selected system of claim 1, (210).   The system (210) of claim 2, wherein the external environment detector (214) is selected from a sound detector (206), a light intensity detector (204), and a room temperature detector (208).   The system (210) of claim 1, wherein the plurality of infant treatment stations (212) are all located in a room.   The system (210) of claim 4, wherein at least one of the external environment detectors (214) is attached to a wall or ceiling of the NICU.   The system (210) of claim 1, further comprising a graphic display (72) communicatively connected to the central processing unit (68).   The central processing unit (68) is configured to indicate the indicator of stress level at each of the plurality of infant treatment stations (212) as an index displayed on the graphic display (72). The system (210) of claim 6. The central processing unit (68) in the graphic display (72), data from the environmental detector ( 40 ), data from the external environmental detector (214), and the stress level of the infant. The system (210) of claim 6, wherein the system (210) is configured to display the indicator.