(19) United States
`(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2009/0247851 A1
`(43) Pub. Date:
`Oct. 1, 2009
`Batchelder et al.
`
`US 20090247851A1
`
`(54) GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE FOR
`MONITOR ALARM MANAGEMENT
`
`(75) Inventors:
`
`Keitch Batchelder, New York, NY
`(US); Scott Amundson, Oakland,
`CA (US); Steve Vargas, Sun Valley,
`CA (US); James Ochs, Seattle, WA
`(US); Li Li, Milpitas, CA (US);
`Robin Boyce, Pleasanton, CA (US)
`Correspondence Address:
`NELLCOR PURTAN BENNETT LLC
`ATTN: IP LEGAL
`60 Middletown Avenue
`North Haven, CT 06473 (US)
`(73) Assignee:
`Nellcor Puritan Bennett LLC,
`Boulder, CO (US)
`12/409,710
`
`(21) Appl. No.:
`
`(22) Filed:
`
`Mar. 24, 2009
`Related U.S. Application Data
`(60) Provisional application No. 61/070,838, filed on Mar.
`26, 2008.
`
`Publication Classification
`
`(51) Int. Cl.
`G06F 3/048
`A6B 5/45.5
`
`(2006.01)
`(2006.01)
`
`(52) U.S. Cl. ......................................... 600/324; 715/772
`
`ABSTRACT
`(57)
`The present disclosure provides a system and method for
`facilitating user input of alarm settings for a patient monitor.
`In various embodiments, a pulse oximetry monitor may
`include a graphical user interface (GUI) which is capable of
`displaying a graph of blood oxygen Saturation percentage
`over time. The system may be capable of allowing a user to
`enter an alarm threshold value and/or an alarm integration
`threshold value. The alarm threshold value may be displayed
`as a line on the graph, and the alarm integration threshold
`value may be displayed as a shaded area on the graph. The
`GUI may include an indicator of where an alarm would be
`initiated given the graph, the input alarm threshold value,
`and/or the alarm integration threshold value. The disclosed
`GUI may provide the user with a clear illustration of how the
`alarm threshold value and alarm integration threshold value
`may affect the alarm.
`
`'R MONITOR
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`22
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`INPUTS
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`Patent Application Publication
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`US 2009/0247851 A1
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`Oct. 1, 2009
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`GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE FOR
`MONITOR ALARM MANAGEMENT
`
`RELATED APPLICATIONS
`0001. This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional
`Application No. 61/070,838, filed Mar. 26, 2008, and is incor
`porated herein by reference in its entirety.
`
`BACKGROUND
`0002 The present disclosure relates to a user interface for
`alarm monitor management.
`0003. This section is intended to introduce the reader to
`various aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of
`the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed
`below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing
`the reader with background information to facilitate a better
`understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure.
`Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are
`to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
`0004. In the field of healthcare, caregivers (e.g., doctors
`and other healthcare professionals) often desire to monitor
`certain physiological characteristics of their patients. Accord
`ingly, a wide variety of monitoring devices have been devel
`oped for monitoring many Such physiological characteristics.
`These monitoring devices often provide doctors and other
`healthcare personnel with information that facilitates provi
`sion of the best possible healthcare for their patients. As a
`result, such monitoring devices have become a perennial fea
`ture of modern medicine.
`0005 One technique for monitoring physiological charac
`teristics of a patient is commonly referred to as pulse oxim
`etry, and the devices built based upon pulse oximetry tech
`niques are commonly referred to as pulse oximeters. Pulse
`Oximeters may be used to measure and monitor various blood
`flow characteristics of a patient. For example, a pulse oXime
`ter may be utilized to monitor the blood oxygen saturation of
`hemoglobin in arterial blood, the volume of individual blood
`pulsations Supplying the tissue, and/or the rate of blood pull
`sations corresponding to each heartbeat of a patient. In fact,
`the “pulse' in pulse oximetry refers to the time-varying
`amount of arterial blood in the tissue during each cardiac
`cycle.
`0006 Pulse oximeters typically utilize a non-invasive sen
`Sor that transmits light through a patient's tissue and that
`photoelectrically detects the absorption and/or scattering of
`the transmitted light in Such tissue. A photo-plethysmo
`graphic waveform, which corresponds to the cyclic attenua
`tion of optical energy through the patient's tissue, may be
`generated from the detected light. Additionally, one or more
`of the above physiological characteristics may be calculated
`based upon the amount of light absorbed or scattered. More
`specifically, the light passed through the tissue may be
`selected to be of one or more wavelengths that may be
`absorbed or scattered by the blood in an amount correlative to
`the amount of the blood constituent present in the blood. The
`amount of light absorbed and/or scattered may then be used to
`estimate the amount of blood constituent in the tissue using
`various algorithms.
`0007. In addition to monitoring a patient's physiological
`characteristics, a pulse oximeter or other patient monitor may
`alert a caregiver when certain physiological conditions are
`recognized. For example, a normal range for a particular
`physiological parameter of a patient may be defined by set
`
`ting low and/or high threshold values for the physiological
`parameter, and an alarm may be generated by the monitor
`when a detected value of the physiological parameter is out
`side the normal range. When activated, the alarm may alert
`the caregiver to a problem associated with the physiological
`parameter being outside of the normal range. The alert may
`include, for example, an audible and/or visible alarm on the
`oximeter or an audible and/or visible alarm at a remote loca
`tion, Such as a nurse station. These patient monitors may
`generally be provided with default alarm thresholds. How
`ever, in some instances, it may be desirable to alter the thresh
`olds for various reasons.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
`0008 Advantages of the disclosure may become apparent
`upon reading the following detailed description and upon
`reference to the drawings in which:
`0009 FIG. 1 is a graph illustrating a patient's measured
`SpO versus time in accordance with embodiments;
`0010 FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a pulse oximeter
`coupled to a multi-parameter patient monitor and a sensor in
`accordance with embodiments;
`0011
`FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the pulse oximeter and
`sensor coupled to a patient in accordance with embodiments;
`and
`0012 FIGS. 4-8 are exemplary graphical user interfaces of
`the pulse oximeter in accordance with embodiments.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION
`0013. One or more specific embodiments will be
`described below. In an effort to provide a concise description
`of these embodiments, not all features of an actual implemen
`tation are described in the specification. It should be appre
`ciated that in the development of any such actual implemen
`tation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous
`implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve
`the developers specific goals, such as compliance with sys
`tem-related and business-related constraints, which may vary
`from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be
`appreciated that such a development effort might be complex
`and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine
`undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those
`of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.
`0014 Different patients may exhibit different normal
`ranges of physiological characteristic values. Factors such as
`age, weight, height diagnosis, and a patient's use of certain
`medications may affect the patient's normal ranges of physi
`ological parameters. For example, with a neonate, the normal
`SpO range may be 80-95 percent. In contrast, for a 40-year
`old patient, the normal SpO range may be 85-100 percent.
`Accordingly, it may be desirable to set different low and/or
`high thresholds for particular parameters based on the patient
`being monitored.
`0015. In addition, simply monitoring a patient's physi
`ological parameters may result in excessive alarms if a
`parameter repeatedly exceeds a threshold only momentarily.
`Accordingly, an alarm integration method may be employed
`to reduce nuisance alarms on patient monitors. An exemplary
`alarm management system may be the SatSecondsTM alarm
`management technology available, for example, in the Oxi
`Max RN-600xTM pulse oximeter available from Nellcor Puri
`tan Bennett, LLC, or Covidien. Generally speaking, SatSec
`onds alarm management operates by integrating an area
`
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`US 2009/0247851 A1
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`Oct. 1, 2009
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`between an alarm threshold and a patient's measured physi
`ological parameters over time. For example, a patient's SpC)
`readings may be charted, as in a graph 2 illustrated in FIG. 1.
`The patient's SpO readings may be displayed as a plot 3 in
`the graph 2. Similarly, a threshold SpO value (e.g., 85 or 90
`percent) may be displayed as a line 4 in the graph 2. Rather
`than Sounding an alarm as soon as the patient's measured
`SpO (plot 3) drops below the threshold value (line 4), the
`SatSeconds system measures an area 5 (shaded in FIG. 1) by
`integrating the difference between the plot 3 and the line 4
`when the plot 3 is below the line 4. The area 5 may be known
`as the SatSeconds value because it is a measure of Saturation
`versus time. When the SatSeconds value exceeds a threshold
`value (e.g., a preset threshold or a user-input threshold), the
`caregiver may be alerted that the patient’s oxygen Saturation
`is too low. Due to the nature of this technology, a significant
`desaturation event 6 (e.g., a large drop in SpO) may cause the
`alarm to activate quickly because the SatSeconds threshold
`value may be exceeded in a short period of time 7. In contrast,
`a minor desaturation event 8 (e.g., a drop in SpO (line 4) to
`just below the threshold (line 6) may not cause the alarm to
`be activated quickly. That is, the minor desaturation event 8
`may continue for a relatively long period of time 9 before the
`SatSeconds threshold value is exceeded. Exemplary SatSec
`onds threshold values may range from 0-200, where a thresh
`old of O SatSeconds results in the alarm being activated as
`soon as the patient's measured SpO (plot 3) drops below the
`threshold value (line 4).
`0016. Because the SatSeconds technology is relatively
`new in the medical field, it may be desirable to assist the
`caregiver in efficiently determining the desired SatSeconds
`threshold value. Accordingly, a patient monitoring system in
`accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure may
`include one or more user interfaces which enable the car
`egiver to change the SatSeconds threshold value and/or the
`SpO threshold value. In addition, the user interfaces may
`include graphical representations, as described below, to
`assist the caregiver in determining the optimal thresholds for
`a patient. Although the techniques introduced above and dis
`cussed in detail below may be implemented for a variety of
`medical devices, the present disclosure will discuss the
`implementation of these techniques in a pulse Oximetry sys
`tem
`0017 FIG. 2 is a perspective view of such a pulse oximetry
`system 10 in accordance with an embodiment. The system 10
`includes a sensor 12 and a pulse Oximetry monitor 14. The
`sensor 12 includes an emitter 16 for emitting light at certain
`wavelengths into a patient's tissue and a detector 18 for
`detecting the light after it is reflected and/or absorbed by the
`patient's tissue. The monitor 14 may be configured to calcu
`late physiological parameters received from the sensor 12
`relating to light emission and detection. Further, the monitor
`14 includes a display 20 configured to display the physiologi
`cal parameters, other information about the system, and/or
`alarm indications. The monitor 14 also includes a speaker 22
`to provide an audible alarm in the event that the patient’s
`physiological parameters exceed a threshold. The sensor 12 is
`communicatively coupled to the monitor 14 via a cable 24.
`However, in other embodiments a wireless transmission
`device (not shown) or the like may be utilized instead of or in
`addition to the cable 24.
`0018. In the illustrated embodiment, the pulse oximetry
`system 10 also includes a multi-parameter patient monitor 26.
`In addition to the monitor 14, or alternatively, the multi
`
`parameter patient monitor 26 may be configured to calculate
`physiological parameters and to provide a central display 28
`for information from the monitor 14 and from other medical
`monitoring devices or systems (not shown). For example, the
`multi-parameter patient monitor 26 may be configured to
`display a patient's SpC) and pulse rate information from the
`monitor 14 and blood pressure from a blood pressure monitor
`(not shown) on the display 28. Additionally, the multi-param
`eter patient monitor 26 may emit a visible or audible alarm via
`the display 28 or a speaker 30, respectively, if the patient’s
`physiological parameters are found to be outside of the nor
`mal range. The monitor 14 may be communicatively coupled
`to the multi-parameter patient monitor 26 via a cable 32 or 34
`coupled to a sensor input port or a digital communications
`port, respectively. In addition, the monitor 14 and/or the
`multi-parameter patient monitor 26 may be connected to a
`network to enable the sharing of information with servers or
`other workstations (not shown).
`0019 FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the exemplary pulse
`oximetry system 10 of FIG. 1 coupled to a patient 40 in
`accordance with present embodiments. One such pulse
`oximeter that may be used in the implementation of the
`present technique is the OxiMax(R) N-600xTM available from
`Nellcor Puritan Bennett LLC, but the following discussion
`may be applied to other pulse Oximeters and medical devices.
`Specifically, certain components of the sensor 12 and the
`monitor 14 are illustrated in FIG. 2. The sensor 12 may
`include the emitter 16, the detector 18, and an encoder 42. It
`should be noted that the emitter 16 may be configured to emit
`at least two wavelengths of light, e.g., RED and IR, into a
`patient's tissue 40. Hence, the emitter 16 may include a RED
`LED 44 and an IRLED 46 for emitting light into the patient's
`tissue 40 at the wavelengths used to calculate the patient’s
`physiological parameters. In certain embodiments, the RED
`wavelength may be between about 600 nm and about 700 nm,
`and the IR wavelength may be between about 800 nm and
`about 1000 nm. Alternative light sources may be used in other
`embodiments. For example, a single wide-spectrum light
`Source may be used, and the detector 18 may be configured to
`detect light only at certain wavelengths. In another example,
`the detector 18 may detect a wide spectrum of wavelengths of
`light, and the monitor 14 may process only those wavelengths
`which are of interest. It should be understood that, as used
`herein, the term “light' may refer to one or more of ultra
`Sound, radio, microwave, millimeter wave, infrared, visible,
`ultraviolet, gamma ray or X-ray electromagnetic radiation,
`and may also include any wavelength within the radio, micro
`wave, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, or X-ray spectra, and that
`any Suitable wavelength of light may be appropriate for use
`with the present techniques.
`0020. In one embodiment, the detector 18 may be config
`ured to detect the intensity of light at the RED and IR wave
`lengths. In operation, light enters the detector 18 after passing
`through the patient's tissue 40. The detector 18 may convert
`the intensity of the received light into an electrical signal. The
`light intensity may be directly related to the absorbance and/
`or reflectance of light in the tissue 40. That is, when more light
`at a certain wavelength is absorbed or reflected, less light of
`that wavelength is typically received from the tissue by the
`detector 18. After converting the received light to an electrical
`signal, the detector 18 may send the signal to the monitor 14,
`where physiological parameters may be calculated based on
`the absorption of the RED and IR wavelengths in the patient’s
`tissue 40.
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`0021. The encoder 42 may contain information about the
`sensor 12, Such as what type of sensor it is (e.g., whether the
`sensor is intended for placement on a forehead or digit) and
`the wavelengths of light emitted by the emitter 16. This infor
`mation may allow the monitor 14 to select appropriate algo
`rithms and/or calibration coefficients for calculating the
`patient's physiological parameters. The encoder 42 may, for
`instance, be a coded resistor which stores values correspond
`ing to the type of the sensor 12 and/or the wavelengths of light
`emitted by the emitter 16. These coded values may be com
`municated to the monitor 14, which determines how to cal
`culate the patient's physiological parameters. In another
`embodiment the encoder 42 may be a memory on which one
`or more of the following information may be stored for com
`munication to the monitor 14: the type of the sensor 12; the
`wavelengths of light emitted by the emitter 16; and the proper
`calibration coefficients and/or algorithms to be used for cal
`culating the patient's physiological parameters. Exemplary
`pulse oximetry sensors configured to cooperate with pulse
`oximetry monitors are the OxiMax(R) sensors available from
`Nellcor Puritan Bennett LLC.
`0022 Signals from the detector 18 and the encoder 42 may
`be transmitted to the monitor 14. The monitor 14 generally
`may include processors 48 connected to an internal bus 50.
`Also connected to the bus may be a read-only memory (ROM)
`52, a random access memory (RAM) 54, user inputs 56, the
`display 20, or the speaker 22. A time processing unit (TPU).58
`may provide timing control signals to a light drive circuitry 60
`which controls when the emitter 16 is illuminated and the
`multiplexed timing for the RED LED 44 and the IR LED 46.
`The TPU 58 control the gating-in of signals from detector 18
`through an amplifier 62 and a Switching circuit 64. These
`signals may be sampled at the proper time, depending upon
`which light source is illuminated. The received signal from
`the detector 18 may be passed through an amplifier 66, a low
`pass filter 68, and an analog-to-digital converter 70. The
`digital data may then be stored in a queued serial module
`(QSM) 72 for later downloading to the RAM 54 as the QSM
`72 fills up. In one embodiment, there may be multiple sepa
`rate parallel paths having the amplifier 66, the filter 68, and
`the A/D converter 70 for multiple light wavelengths or spectra
`received.
`0023 The processor(s) 48 may determine the patient's
`physiological parameters, such as SpC) and pulse rate, using
`various algorithms and/or look-up tables based on the value
`of the received signals corresponding to the light received by
`the detector 18. Signals corresponding to information about
`the sensor 12 may be transmitted from the encoder 42 to a
`decoder 74. The decoder 74 may translate these signals to
`enable the microprocessor to determine the proper method for
`calculating the patient's physiological parameters, for
`example, based on algorithms or look-up tables stored in the
`ROM 52. In addition, or alternatively, the encoder 42 may
`contain the algorithms or look-up tables for calculating the
`patient's physiological parameters. The user inputs 56 may be
`used to change alarm thresholds for measured physiological
`parameters on the monitor 14, as described below. In certain
`embodiments, the display 20 may exhibit a minimum SpO.
`threshold and a selection of SatSeconds values, which the
`user may change using the user inputs 56. The monitor 14
`may then provide an alarm when the patient's calculated
`SpO, integral exceeds the SatSeconds threshold.
`0024 FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary monitor 14 for use in
`the system 10 (FIG. 2). The monitor 14 may generally include
`
`the display 20, the speaker 22, the user inputs 56, and a
`communication port 80 for coupling the sensor 12 (FIG. 2) to
`the monitor 14. The display 20 may generally show an SpO.
`value 82 (i.e., percentage), a pulse rate 84 (i.e., beats per
`minute), a plethysmographic waveform (i.e., a plot 86), and a
`graphical representation 88 of the measured SpO, value ver
`sus time (i.e., a plot 90). In addition to displaying a trend of the
`patient's SpO value, the graph 88 may serve as an indicator
`of the SatSeconds value. For example, a set SpO, threshold
`value (i.e., a line 92) may be displayed on the graph 88 with
`the plot 90. When the measured SpO, value (i.e., the plot 90)
`drops below the threshold value (i.e., the line 92), an area 94
`between the plot 90 and the line 92 may begin to fill in on the
`display 14. At this time, the monitor 14 may begin to integrate
`the difference between the measured SpOvalue (i.e., the plot
`90) and the threshold value (i.e., the line 92). When the area
`94 reaches a set value (i.e., the SatSeconds threshold value),
`the monitor 14 may indicate to the caregiver that a desatura
`tion eventis occurring, for example, by Sounding an alarm via
`the speaker 22, displaying an alert message on the display 20,
`sending a signal to a nurse's station, or otherwise providing a
`notification that the patient's physiological parameters are not
`normal.
`0025. The user inputs 56 may enable the caregiver to con
`trol the monitor 14 and change settings, such as the SpO.
`threshold value and/or the SatSeconds threshold value. For
`example, an alarm silence button 96 may enable the caregiver
`to silence an audible alarm (e.g., when the patient is being
`cared for), and volume buttons 98 may enable the caregiver to
`adjust the Volume of the alarm and/or any other indicators
`emitted from the speaker 22. In addition, soft keys 100 may
`correspond to variable functions, as displayed on the display
`22. The soft keys 100 may provide access to further data
`displays and/or setting displays, as described further below.
`Soft keys 100 provided on the display 20 may enable the
`caregiver to see and/or change alarm thresholds, view differ
`ent trend data, change characteristics of the display 20, turn a
`backlight on or off, or perform other functions.
`0026 AS indicated, the caregiver may access an alarm
`threshold control display 110, an embodiment of which is
`illustrated in FIG.5, by selecting the limits soft key 100 (FIG.
`4). The alarm threshold control display 110 may enable the
`caregiver to view and/or change both an SpO, threshold 112
`and a SatSeconds threshold 114. In addition, a graphical
`representation 116 of the effect of the SpO threshold 112 and
`the SatSeconds threshold 114 may be provided. The graphical
`representation 116 may include, for example, an exemplary
`SpO, plot 118 and a line 120 corresponding to the SpO,
`threshold 112. As will be illustrated further, the exemplary
`SpO plot 118 may remain constant so that the caregiver can
`clearly see how changes to the SpO threshold 112 and the
`SatSeconds threshold 114 will affect the alarm settings.
`0027 Based on the Sp0, threshold 112 and the SatSec
`onds threshold 114, an alarm indicator 122 may illustrate the
`time at which the alarm would be sounded in the SpO plot
`118. That is, given the SpO plot 118 and the thresholds 112
`and 114, the monitor 14 (FIG. 2) would alert the caregiver to
`a problem at the point indicated by the alarm indicator 122. A
`shaded symbol 124 may correspond to the SatSeconds thresh
`old 114 to indicate to the caregiver the size of an area 126
`between the threshold line 120 and the plot 118 which must be
`filled before the alarm would go off. Furthermore, the first
`area 126 which corresponds to the SatSeconds threshold 114
`may be shaded in to enable the caregiver to see where the
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`SatSeconds threshold 114 is first exceeded on the exemplary
`SpOplot 118. The shaded in area 126 may correspond to the
`alarm indicator 122.
`0028. The thresholds 112 and 114 may be changed via soft
`keys. For example, an SpO soft key 128 may be selected to
`change the SpO threshold 112, or a SatSeconds soft key 130
`may be selected to change the SatSeconds threshold 114.
`Selection of the threshold 112 or 114 may be indicated, for
`example, by a backlight, a color change, an underline, or any
`other indication method. The threshold 112 or 114 may then
`be changed by pressing increment soft keys 132. The left
`increment soft key 132 may be pressed to decrease the thresh
`old 112 or 114, while the right increment soft key 132
`increases the threshold 112 or 114. It should be understood
`that the position of the increment soft keys 132 may be
`reversed. The increment soft keys 132 may be up and down
`arrows, left and right arrows, a minis sign and a plus sign,
`“UP' and “DOWN,” or any other indicator which enables the
`caregiver to clearly adjust the thresholds 112 and 114. The
`thresholds 112 and 114 may be displayed as a numerical value
`134 (e.g., the SpO, threshold 112), a virtual knob 136 (e.g.,
`the SatSeconds threshold), or any other value indicator. In
`addition, the thresholds 112 and 114 may be adjusted in
`increments of any size. For example, the SpO threshold 112
`may be adjusted in increments of 1% while the SatSeconds
`threshold 114 may be adjusted in increments of 25. A number
`of discreet values may be available for the thresholds 112 and
`114, or the value adjustment may be continuous.
`0029. As described above, changes in the thresholds 112
`and/or 114 are illustrated in the graphical representation 116.
`While the SpO, plot 118 remains constant, the threshold line
`120 may move up or down based on changes to the SpO.
`threshold. Furthermore, in the case of a color display 110, the
`SpO threshold value 112 and the line 120 may be the same
`color, which is different from the other colors in the graphical
`representation 116. Similarly, the SatSeconds symbol 124
`and the area 126 may change based on the SatSeconds thresh
`old 114. The SatSeconds threshold 114, symbol 124, and area
`126 may be illustrated in the same color, which is different
`from the other colors on the display 110. By color-coding the
`display 110, the caregiver may further see how the threshold
`values 112 and 114 affect the alarm settings. In addition, the
`SatSeconds symbol 124 may take on various forms to further
`illustrate the differences in SatSeconds thresholds 114. For
`example, the symbol 124 may be a square which varies in size
`based on the threshold 114, or the symbol 124 may be a square
`of constant size which fills up based on the threshold 114.
`0030 FIGS.5-7 illustrate how changes in the SpO, thresh
`old 112 and the SatSeconds threshold 114 are illustrated in the
`graphical representation 116. For example, in FIG. 5 the
`SatSeconds threshold 114 is increased from 25 (FIG. 4) to
`100. The SpO threshold 112 remains at 85%, unchanged
`from FIG. 4. The alarm indicator 122 in FIG. 5 is moved over
`relative to the alarm indicator 122 in FIG. 4 because the
`SatSeconds threshold 114 is greater. In addition, two areas
`126 in which the SpOplot 118 drops below the SpO thresh
`old line 120 are not shaded in because the SatSeconds thresh
`old 114 is not reached before the plot 118 again goes above
`the line 120. The SatSeconds symbol 124 is illustrated as a
`larger square in FIG. 5, corresponding to the high SatSeconds
`threshold 114.
`0031
`FIG. 6 illustrates the difference in alarm settings
`when the Sp0, threshold 112 is increased from 85% (FIG.5)
`to 90% (FIG. 6). The SatSeconds threshold 114 is constant
`
`from FIG.5 to FIG. 6. As the alarm indicator 122 and the area
`126 illustrate, the SatSeconds threshold 114 is reached earlier
`in FIG. 6 than in FIG. 5. Because the SpO, plot 118 does not
`go above the SpO, threshold line 120 after the first desatura
`tion event, calculation of the SatSeconds value is not reset.
`Therefore, the alarm will be activated earlier for the given plot
`118.
`0032. Finally, FIG. 7 illustrates the effect that reducing the
`SatSeconds threshold 114 to zero will have on the alarm
`settings. At a threshold 114 of zero, the alarm will be activated
`as soon as the SpO, plot 118 falls below the threshold line
`120, as illustrated by the indicator 122. There is no shaded
`area 126 because the SatSeconds integration, as described
`above, is not needed in this example.
`0033. While only certain features have been illustrated
`and described herein, many modifications and changes will
`occur to those skilled in the art. It is, therefore, to be under
`stood that the appended claims are intended to cover all Such
`modifications and changes as fall within their true spirit.
`What is claimed is:
`1. A monitor, comprising:
`a display;
`a graphical user interface capable of being illustrated on the
`display, the graphical user interface comprising:
`an indication of an alarm threshold value;
`an indication of an alarm integration threshold value;
`and
`a graphical representation of a physiological parameter,
`wherein the indication of the alarm threshold value
`generally comprises a line on the graphical represen
`tation, and the indication of the alarm integration
`threshold value generally comprises a shaded area on
`the graphical representation; and
`a processor capable of calculating the physiological
`parameter for illustration on the display.
`2. The monitor of claim 1, wherein the processor is capable
`of integrating the difference between the line and a real-time
`plot of the physiological parameter measured over time when
`the physiological parameter is below the line.
`3 The monitor of claim 1, wherein the physical parameter
`comprises a blood oxygen Saturation.
`4. The monitor of claim 1, comprising soft keys capable of
`enabling user input of an alarm threshold value and/or an
`alarm integration threshold value.
`5. The monitor of claim 4, comprising an alarm capable of
`alerting a caregiver when the calculated physiological param
`eter exceeds the alarm threshold value and/or the alarm inte
`gration threshold value.
`6. The monitor of claim 1, comprising a second graphical
`user interface capable of being illustrated on the display,
`wherein the second graphical user interface comprises a real
`time plot of the physiological parameter measured over time.
`7. A system, comprising:
`a monitor, comprising:
`a graphical user interface capable of illustration on the
`display, the graphical user interface comprising:
`an indication of an alarm threshold value;
`an indication of an alarm integration threshold value;
`and
`a graphical representation of a physiological parameter,
`wherein the indication of the alarm threshold value
`generally comprises a line on the graphical represen
`tation and the indication of the alarm integration
`
`Page 11 of 12
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`US 2009/0247851 A1
`
`Oct. 1, 2009
`
`threshold value generally comprises a shaded area on
`the graphical representation; and
`a sensor capable of providing information to the monitor.
`8. The system of claim 7, wherein the sensor comprises a
`pulse oximetry sensor.
`9. The system of claim 7, wherein the monitor is capable of
`determining an alarm integration parameter based at least in
`part upon a real-time measurement of the physiological
`parameter compared to the indicated alarm threshold value
`line when the real-time measu