Granted Patent B2

US 8,942,779 · App. 14/454,300 · Granted Jan 27, 2015

Abstract

Claims (28)

1. A method for detecting an onset of a hypoglycemia episode in a subject, the method comprising:

monitoring one or more critical parameters for hypoglycemia without contacting the subject;

detecting a variation of at least one of the critical parameters; and

activating an alarm when at least one of the critical parameters deviates from an accepted value.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the method further comprises determining a baseline level of at least one of the critical parameters, and wherein detecting the variation comprises detecting the variation of said at least one of the critical parameters from said baseline level.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the method is practiced while the subject is asleep.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 , wherein the method is practiced without requiring compliance of the subject.

5. Apparatus for detecting an onset of a hypoglycemia episode in a subject, the apparatus comprising:

at least one sensor configured to monitor one or more critical parameters for hypoglycemia without contacting or viewing the subject, and to generate a signal in response thereto; and

a control unit configured to:

by analyzing the signal, detect the onset of the hypoglycemia episode by detecting a variation of at least one of the critical parameters from a baseline level, and

activate an alarm in response thereto.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 ,

wherein the control unit is further configured to determine the baseline level of the at least one of the critical parameters.

7. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 , wherein the critical parameters include at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of: respiration rate, heart rate, occurrence of palpitations, restlessness, and tremor, the control unit being configured to detect a variation of the at least one selected parameter.

8. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 , wherein the apparatus is configured to be used while the subject is asleep.

9. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the apparatus is configured to be used without requiring compliance of the subject.

10. The apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the critical parameters include tremor, the control unit being configured to detect the variation of the tremor.

11. The apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein the control unit is configured to detect the variation of the tremor by monitoring body motion of the subject at between 3 and 18 Hz.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the control unit is configured to detect the variation of the tremor by monitoring body motion of the subject at between 8 and 12 Hz.

13. The apparatus according to claim 10 , wherein the control unit is configured to:

identify a tremor signal by subtracting a heart rate signal and a respiration rate signal from the generated signal, and

detect the variation of the tremor by analyzing the tremor signal.

14. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the control unit is configured to detect the variation by:

calculating a hypoglycemia score that is an average of (a) a ratio of a current respiration rate to a baseline respiration rate, (b) a ratio of a current heart rate to a baseline heart rate, (c) a ratio of a current tremor level to a baseline tremor level, and (d) a ratio of a current restlessness level to a baseline restlessness level, and

comparing the hypoglycemia score to a threshold.

15. The apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising a drug administration device, wherein the control unit is configured to drive the drug administration device to deliver glucose to the subject upon detecting the onset of the hypoglycemia episode.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15 , wherein the drug administration device comprises a spray dispenser.

Assignments (8)