Patent ID: 7027870

Claim:
A process for managing data collection for clinical protocols having as a subject the use of an implant of an active implantable medical device type, such as a pacemaker, a defibrillator, a cardiovertor and/or a multisite device, comprising: a) initializing preliminarily a plurality of implants taking part in a clinical protocol and having a protocol identification zone by writing a protocol identification code in said protocol identification zone common to said plurality of implants; b) providing a programmer having a memory and a display screen, said programmer being able to interrogate at least one of said implants; c) interrogating an implant using said programmer and, at each interrogation: i) searching for a protocol identification zone in said memory of the implant and reading the contents thereof, ii) determining a presence of a protocol identification code in said protocol identification zone contents, and iii) in the event of a detected protocol identification code: recognizing the protocol identification code using the programmer, displaying on said programmer screen a questionnaire associated with the identified protocol identification code, capturing answers to that questionnaire using the programmer, and memorizing said answers in said programmer memory.