초록 ▼

A portable unit comprises a sampling mechanism used by a patient to take a sample of a bodily fluid or tissue that can be tested for any property indicative of a medical condition of the patient, a microprocessor for determining a treatment for the condition based on a test of the sample, and an adm

A portable unit comprises a sampling mechanism used by a patient to take a sample of a bodily fluid or tissue that can be tested for any property indicative of a medical condition of the patient, a microprocessor for determining a treatment for the condition based on a test of the sample, and an administration mechanism for administering the treatment based on the determination by the microprocessor. Operationally, the unit samples a bodily function, evaluates the sample, determines from stored protocols and criteria if treatment is required, and administers treatment. Two-way wireless communication between the unit and one or more remote networks enables numerous functionalities, including (i) collection and collation of medical information and records relating to multiple users of information stored by their units for access by healthcare providers, regulatory agencies, insurance carriers, pharmaceutical companies, and others, (ii) unit maintenance and resupply of consumables, and (iii) direct user-to-user communication.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A treatment administration unit comprising: a housing of a size suitable for transport in a handbag or clothing pocket;a sampling module in the housing operable to take a biological sample from a patient and test a property of the sample relating to a medical condition of the patient;a microproce

1. A treatment administration unit comprising: a housing of a size suitable for transport in a handbag or clothing pocket;a sampling module in the housing operable to take a biological sample from a patient and test a property of the sample relating to a medical condition of the patient;a microprocessor in the housing for operating the sampling module and determining the medical condition of the patient from the property tested by the sampling module;an administration module in the housing including (i) a container for a substance effective to treat the medical condition and (ii) an administration device operable to administer the substance internally of the patient from the container under the control of the microprocessor, wherein a start signal is generated when operation of the administration device has been enabled;a proximity sensor for generating a sensing signal when the unit is oriented relative to the patient for operation of the administration device;a wireless communication device in the housing and under the control of the microprocessor; andcircuitry in the housing for detecting the location of the unit, wherein:the microprocessor includes a treatment protocol memory for an individual patient that stores parameters for determining when the medical condition determined by the testing of the sample property presents a potential danger to the patient and a healthcare facility index with geographical locations and contact information for a plurality of healthcare facilities,the unit includes timer circuitry for measuring a time elapsed from the determination by the microprocessor that the medical condition presents a potential danger to the patient and for measuring a time elapsed from generation of the start signal,the microprocessor is operable to determine from the location of the unit and the healthcare facility index a location of a healthcare facility that can treat the patient,the microprocessor automatically operates the administration device to introduce the substance internally of the patient when the sensing signal is generated prior to the elapse of a first predetermined time after generation of the start signal, andthe wireless communication device automatically notifies a healthcare facility of the existence of the medical condition presenting a potential danger to the patient and the location of the unit in the absence of a start signal before the elapse of a second predetermined time. 2. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1 further comprising a user interface in the housing, wherein the user interface includes a visual display and a speaker and is operable under the control of the microprocessor for receiving operational commands from a user of the unit and providing information to the user. 3. A treatment administration unit as in claim 2, wherein the user interface further includes at least one of a manual input device, a microphone, a vibratory device, and at least one video camera. 4. A treatment administration unit as in claim 3, wherein said microprocessor includes speech recognition software for converting voice signals received by the microphone into operational commands and artificial intelligence for facilitating understanding of user commands input via the user interface. 5. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein: the sampling module includes an oximeter, the biological sample is the breath of the patient, and the property is the patient's blood oxygen level determined by the oximeter;the medical condition presenting a potential danger to the patient is an overdose of an opiate determined by the microprocessor from the patient's blood oxygen level;the substance is a nalaxone opioid inverse agonist; andthe administration device is operable to administer an amount of the nalaxone opioid inverse agonist determined by the microprocessor to be appropriate according to the amount of the opiate overdose, and the nalaxone opioid inverse agonist is administered by one of intravenous injection, intramuscular injection, and as a nasal spray. 6. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1 further comprising a user interface in the housing, wherein the user interface includes a visual display and a speaker and the wireless communication device includes at least one of a wireless Internet connection and cellular telephone circuitry for receiving at least one of video and audio signals from personnel associated with a healthcare facility. 7. A treatment administration unit as in claim 6, wherein the microprocessor includes an emergency contact index of at least one individual to be notified when the medical condition presents a potential danger to the patient, and the wireless communication device automatically notifies the individual of the patient's medical condition and the healthcare facility that has been contacted. 8. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the healthcare facility index includes information relating to the capabilities of the indexed healthcare facilities relative to the patient's medical condition and the microprocessor is operable to select the healthcare facility to contact based on the capabilities of healthcare facilities near to the unit's location. 9. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the microprocessor is operable to select the nearest healthcare facility to contact based on its proximity to the unit's location. 10. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the circuitry for detecting the location of the unit comprises a GPS system. 11. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the first predetermined time is shorter than the second predetermined time. 12. A treatment administration unit as in claim 11, wherein the first predetermined time is about five seconds and the second predetermined time is between 10 seconds and one minute. 13. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the proximity sensor is a contact sensor for generating the sensing signal when the unit is in contact with the patient's skin. 14. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, further comprising a user interface including at least one of a display and a speaker in the housing for communicating information to a user of the unit relating to the operation thereof, wherein: the microprocessor is operable in response to the determination of the medical condition presenting a potential danger to the patient to determine a dosage of the substance to be administered to the patient for treating the medical condition and to inform the user of the dosage via the user interface by at least one of displaying the dosage on the user interface display and announcing the dosage over the user interface speaker;the microprocessor is operable in response to the start signal to instruct the user via at least the user interface speaker to orient the unit relative to the patient for generation of a sensing signal and to inform the user of the predetermined time after generation of the start signal until the substance will be introduced into the patient by the administration device; andthe microprocessor is operable to provide a second-by-second audible countdown over the user interface speaker of the time elapsed from generation of the start signal. 15. A treatment administration unit as in claim 14, wherein the microprocessor is operable to effect at least one of the following when the first predetermined time elapses before generation of the sensing signal: (i) cause the user interface to again instruct the user to orient the unit relative to the patient for generation of a sensing signal, and (ii) cause the wireless communication device to notify a healthcare facility of the existence of the medical condition presenting a potential danger to the patient and the location of the unit. 16. A treatment administration unit as in claim 14, wherein the user interface includes a manual input device for permitting the user to determine a different dosage of the substance from the dosage determined by the microprocessor and the operation of the administration device can be enabled only after the dosage has been determined. 17. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the administration device is enabled manually by a user of the unit. 18. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, further comprising a user interface for receiving operational commands from a user of the unit, wherein: a dosage of the substance to be administered to the patient is determined by one of: (i) the microprocessor in accordance with the stored treatment protocol for the patient, and (ii) a dosage input using the user interface; andthe microprocessor is operable after determination of the dosage to actuate a motor in the housing to enable the operation of the administration device. 19. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein the second predetermined time is between 10 seconds and one minute. 20. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, wherein: the property is the patient's blood glucose level;the medical condition presenting a potential danger to the patient is hyperglycemia determined by the microprocessor from the patient's blood glucose level;the substance is insulin; andthe administration device is operable to administer an amount of the insulin determined by the microprocessor to be appropriate according to the patient's blood glucose level and the insulin is administered by injection using a hypodermic syringe. 21. A treatment administration unit as in claim 20, wherein the biological sample is the blood of the patient. 22. A treatment administration unit as in claim 1, further comprising a replacement second administration module accepted by the unit and containing a second substance effective to treat a medical condition of the patient. 23. A blood glucose testing unit comprising: a housing of a size suitable for transport in a handbag or clothing pocket;a sampling module in the housing operable to take a biological sample from a patient and determine the patient's blood glucose level from the biological sample;a microprocessor in the housing for operating the sampling module;an insulin administration unit in the housing, the administration unit including (i) a container for insulin and (ii) an administration device operable to administer the insulin internally of the patient from the container under the control of the microprocessor, wherein a start signal is generated when operation of the administration device is enabled;a proximity sensor for generating a sensing signal when the unit is oriented relative to the patient for operation of the administration device;a user interface in the housing under the control of the microprocessor, the user interface including (i) at least one of a display and a speaker for communicating information to a user of the unit, and (ii) an input device for accepting an input from the user;a wireless communication device in the housing and under the control of the microprocessor; andcircuitry in the housing for detecting the location of the unit, wherein:the microprocessor includes a treatment protocol memory for an individual patient that stores parameters for determining when the patient's blood glucose level indicates a hypoglycemic or hyperglycemic condition of potential danger to the patient and a healthcare facility index with geographical locations and contact information for a plurality of healthcare facilities,the microprocessor is operable to cause the user interface to notify the user that the patient's hypoglycemic condition presents a potential danger,the unit includes timer circuitry for measuring a time elapsed after the notification that the patient's hypoglycemic condition presents a potential danger, for measuring the time elapsed from the determination by the microprocessor that the patient's hyperglycemic condition presents a potential danger, and for measuring a time elapsed from generation of the start signal,the microprocessor is operable to determine from the location of the unit and the healthcare facility index a location a healthcare facility that can treat the patient,the wireless communication device automatically notifies a healthcare facility of the existence of a patient with a potentially dangerous level of hypoglycemia and the location of the unit in the absence of an input via the user interface acknowledging the notification before the elapse of a first predetermined time,the microprocessor automatically operates the administration device to introduce the insulin internally of the patient when the sensing signal is generated prior to the elapse of a second predetermined time after generation of the start signal, andthe wireless communication device automatically notifies a healthcare facility of the existence of a patient with a potentially dangerous level of hyperglycemia and the location of the unit in the absence of a start signal before the elapse of a third predetermined time. 24. A treatment administration unit as in claim 23, wherein the microprocessor is operable to effect at least one of the following when the second predetermined time elapses before generation of the sensing signal: (i) cause the user interface to again instruct the user to orient the unit relative to the patient for generation of a sensing signal, and (ii) cause the wireless communication device to notify a healthcare facility of the existence of the hyperglycemic condition presenting a potential danger to the patient and the location of the unit. 25. A blood glucose testing unit as in claim 23, wherein the biological sample is the blood of the patient. 26. A blood glucose testing unit as in claim 23, wherein the microprocessor is operable when the patient's blood glucose level indicates a hypoglycemic condition to cause the user interface to provide instructions for the patient to ingest at least one blood glucose containing substance. 27. A blood glucose testing unit as in claim 23, wherein the second predetermined time is shorter than the third predetermined time. 28. A blood glucose testing unit as in 27, wherein the second predetermined time is about five seconds and the third predetermined time is between 10 seconds and one minute.