Patent ID: 6736787
Filing Date: 2004-05-18
Classification: A61H

Abstract:
Apparatus for applying pressure waveforms to a patient's limb in order to augment venous blood flow in the limb and for monitoring the applied pressure waveforms, comprising:an inflatable sleeve adapted for positioning onto a limb to apply a pressure to the limb beneath the sleeve when inflated with gas; pressure transducing means for measuring the pressure of gas in the sleeve and for producing a sleeve pressure signal indicative of the measured pressure; pressure waveform application means responsive to the sleeve pressure signal and a reference pressure waveform signal and operable by supplying gas to the sleeve at a pressure near a pressure indicated by a reference pressure waveform; waveform register means for producing a succession of reference pressure waveform signals, each indicative of a reference pressure waveform during a predetermined cycle time period, and for storing a set of waveform parameters that correspond to the reference pressure waveforms, wherein the amplitude of each reference pressure waveform signal at any time within the predetermined cycle time period is indicative of the amplitude of the reference pressure waveform at the time; waveform parameter measurement means for periodically measuring at least one value of a waveform parameter of the pressure applied by the sleeve and corresponding to one of the set of waveform parameters and for producing waveform parameter signals indicative of the measured values of the waveform parameter; interval measuring means for producing an interval signal indicative of a time interval between a first occurrence when the measured value of the parameter is near a predetermined parameter level and the next occurrence when the measured value of the parameter is near the predetermined parameter level; and a register for storing the interval signal for later retrieval and display.