Patent ID: 7395117

Claim:
An implantable medical device for use in a patient management system, said medical device comprising: a sensor capable of measuring a body characteristic and generating clinical data describing said measurement; and an implantable wireless transmitter/receiver unit capable of: determining whether an external local transceiver is within a short-range telemetry communication range of said implantable wireless transmitter/receiver; establishing a first communications link with a host computer using said external local transceiver, when said implantable wireless transmitter/receiver unit is within said short-range telemetry communication range of said local transceiver, to deliver said clinical data to said host computer using said first communications link; and establishing a second communications link with said host computer over a pervasive wireless communications network, when said implantable wireless transmitter/receiver unit is not within said short-range telemetry communication range of said local transceiver to deliver said clinical data to said host computer over said second communications link.