Method and apparatus for estimating water reserves
A system and method are provided for a water reserve index. The method includes determining a lean water fraction of tissue for at least one tissue site and determining skin thickness for the at least one tissue site. The lean water fraction and skin thickness are combined to produce a water reserve estimate.
1. A system for determining a water reserve index comprising:
a sensor, the sensor comprising:
an emitter configured to emit near-infrared light;
a detector located between 1 to 5 mm from the emitter configured to detect the emitted light and generate a signal representative of the detected light, wherein the emitter and the detector are configured to optically couple with an individual's skin;
a monitor communicatively coupled to the sensor and configured to receive the generated signal, the monitor comprising:
a microprocessor configured to calculate a lean water fraction based on the received signal, the microprocessor combining the lean water fraction with a skin thickness value to determine a water reserve index; and
a display configured to display the determined water reserve index to the user.
2. The system of claim 1 wherein the microprocessor is configured to compute the skin thickness based on the received signal.
3. The system of claim 1 wherein combining the lean water fraction with skin thickness comprises multiplying the lean water fraction with the skin thickness.
4. The system of claim 1 comprising a keyboard configured to allow a user to input parameters pertinent to the determination of a water reserve index.
5. The system of claim 4 wherein the keyboard is configured to allow a user to input sensor location information.
6. The system of claim 4 wherein keyboard is configured to allow a user to input sensor elevation information.
7. The system of claim 1 wherein the display is configured to allow a user to indicate sensor location information.
8. The system of claim 1 wherein the sensor is configured to the monitor location specific information.
9. The system of claim 1 wherein the emitter is 2.5 mm from the detector.