Patent · US Expired

Selective cardiac activity analysis atrial fibrillation detection system and method and atrial defibrillator utilizing same

US5522852A · kind A · utility

66Cited by
1References
68Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateApr 26, 1994
Grant dateJun 4, 1996
Priority date
Expiry dateApr 26, 2014

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61N1/395
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

An atrial defibrillator applies cardioverting electrical energy to the atria of a human heart in need of cardioversion. The defibrillator includes an electrode pair and a sense amplifier associated with the atria of the heart for sensing electrical activity of the heart during a plurality of cardiac cycles to provide a cardiac signal. A detector is responsive to the cardiac signal for detecting cardiac events. During each cardiac cycle of the plurality of cardiac cycles, a time for counting is established wherein each time for counting has a total duration less than the duration of its corresponding cardiac cycle. A counter counts the cardiac events detected by the detector during the time for counting of the plurality of cardiac cycles to provide a cardiac event count. A comparator compares the cardiac event count to a predetermined cardiac event count. If the cardiac event count is greater than the predetermined cardiac event count, the atria are deemed to be in fibrillation and a cardiovertor applies cardioverting electrical energy to the atria to cardiovert the detected atrial fibrillation.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.