Method and device for early detection of heart attack

1. A wearable sensor device for heart performance characterization and abnormality detection, comprising: an interface for receiving sampled data representing an electrical signal indicating electrical activity of a patient heart over a plurality of heart beat cycles; a signal processor for using the received sampled data in determining a first electrocardiogram morphological signal value and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) value over a plurality of heart cycles; a comparator for comparing the first electrocardiogram morphological signal value and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) value with a threshold value to provide a comparison indicator; a patient monitor that in response to said comparison indicator indicates a calculated signal value exceeding the threshold value, and generates an alert message associated with the threshold, a first module, wherein the first module provides data relating to measurement of change of an St-segment, QT interval or T wave and a second module, wherein the second module classifies heart beats as premature ventricular contraction, premature atrial contraction, fusion, right bundle branch block, left bundle branch block or normal using semi-supervised learning algorithms that are created from data derived from the patient's heart beats.

2. A device according to claim 1 , wherein said signal processor uses the received sampled data in determining a second electrocardiogram morphological signal value and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) value over a plurality of heart cycles.

3. A device according to claim 2 , wherein said signal processor determines a ratio of a first signal characteristic value to a second signal characteristic value.

4. A device according to claim 2 , wherein said signal processor determines a relationship between the first electrocardiogram morphological signal and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) signal and the second morphological signal and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) signal.

5. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the threshold value is a second electrocardiogram morphological signal and its discrete wavelet transformed (DWT) signal.

6. A device according to claim 5 , wherein said comparator determines a comparison indicator indicating whether said at least one of the first or second signal values lies in a predetermined value range and said patient monitor, in response to said comparison indicator indicating a calculated signal value lies in a predetermined value range, generates an alert message associated with the value range.

7. A device according to claim 5 , wherein said threshold value is derived from recorded electrical signal data for said patient.

8. A device according to claim 5 , wherein said signal processor dynamically adjusts said threshold value in response to a determined sensitivity of arrhythmia detection.

9. A device according to claim 5 , wherein said plurality of heart cycles are successive heart cycles.

10. A device according to claim 5 , wherein said signal processor dynamically adjusts at least one of said predetermined threshold values in response to a determined heart electrical activity signal variation of said patient.

11. A device according to claim 1 , including a repository of mapping information, associating ranges of said first and second signal values with corresponding medical conditions and said comparator compares said first and second characteristic values with said ranges to provide a comparison indicator identifying a medical condition and said patient monitor generates an alert message identifying said medical condition.

12. A device according to claim 11 , wherein said predetermined mapping information associates ranges of said first and second signal values with particular patient demographic characteristics and with corresponding medical conditions and said system uses patient demographic data including at least one of, age weight, gender and height in comparing the first and second characteristic values with said ranges and generating an alert message indicating a potential medical condition.

13. A device according to claim 1 , wherein said threshold value is derived from recorded electrical signal data for a population of patients.

14. A device according to claim 13 , wherein said population of patients has similar demographic characteristics including at least two of, (a) age, (b) weight, (c) gender and (d) height, to those of said patient.

15. The device according to claim 1 , wherein said alert message is delivered through a smartphone.

16. The device according to claim 1 , wherein said alert message is computed by a smartphone.