Dynamically variable filter

Abstract

A method of processing a signal pertaining to at least one electrical property of an organ of a subject is disclosed. The method comprises determining a physiological condition of the subject, selecting a frequency band, filtering the signal according to the frequency band, and dynamically adapting the frequency band in response to a change in the physiological condition.

Claims

1. Apparatus for monitoring an electrical property of an organ of a subject, comprising: a plurality of electrodes, connectable to the skin of the subject, and configured for transmitting output radiofrequency signals to the organ and for sensing input radiofrequency signals from the organ; an input for receiving said input radiofrequency signals from at least one of said electrodes; a signal processor for processing said input radiofrequency signals based on said output radiofrequency signals, to provide processed input signals; a monitoring unit; and a filtering unit having a circuit configured for filtering said processed signals so as to output filtered signals to said monitoring unit; wherein: said filtering unit comprises a dynamically variable band pass filter having a lower frequency bound and an upper frequency bound, wherein at least one of said frequency bounds is adapted in response to a change in a heart rate of the subject and wherein at least one of said frequency bounds comprises a function of said heart rate which is linear over a range of heart rates spanning from less than 60 BPM to more than 180 BPM, wherein said function of said heart rate gradually increases with said heart rate over said range; and said monitoring unit has a circuit configured for monitoring the electrical property of the organ based on said filtered signals, by recording the electrical property and/or transmitting the electrical property to an external device.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said lower bound is about 0.9*(HR/60) Hz at all times, wherein said HR is said heart rate in units of beats per minute.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said upper frequency bound is about 6+1.5*[(HR/60)1] Hz at all times, wherein said HR is said heart rate in units of beats per minute.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said input radiofrequency signals are indicative of impedance of the organ.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said input radiofrequency signals are indicative of hemodynamic reactance of the organ.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said signal processor comprises an analog filter for filtering said input radiofrequency signals.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said processed input signals are indicative of a phase shift of said input radiofrequency signals relative to said output radiofrequency signals transmitted to the organ.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said signal processor comprises an envelope elimination unit having a circuit configured to reduce or eliminate amplitude modulation so as to provide processed signals of substantially constant envelope.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein said circuit of said envelope elimination unit is configured to maintain a phase modulation of said signals.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said signal processor comprises a mixer configured to mix said input radiofrequency signals and said output radiofrequency signals transmitted to the organ.

11. A system for monitoring an electrical property of an organ of a subject, comprising: a radiofrequency generator for generating said output radiofrequency signals; and the apparatus of claim 1.

12. A method of monitoring an electrical property of an organ of a subject, comprising: transmitting output radiofrequency signals to the organ and sensing input radiofrequency signals from the organ by a plurality of electrodes connected to the skin of the subject; processing said input radiofrequency signals by a signal processor based on said output radiofrequency signals, to provide processed input signals; filtering said processed signals by a dynamically variable band pass filter so as to output filtered signals, said dynamically variable band pass filter having a lower frequency bound and an upper frequency bound, wherein at least one of said frequency bounds is adapted in response to a change in a heart rate of the subject and wherein at least one of said frequency bounds comprises a function of said heart rate which is linear over a range of heart rates spanning from less than 60 BPM to more than 180 BPM, wherein said function of said heart rate gradually increases with said heart rate over said range; monitoring the electrical property of the organ based on said filtered signals; and displaying the electrical property on a display device.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said lower bound is about 0.9*(HR/60) Hz at all times, wherein said HR is said heart rate in units of beats per minute.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein said upper frequency bound is about 6+1.5*[(HR/60)1] Hz at all times, wherein said HR is said heart rate in units of beats per minute.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein said input radiofrequency signals are indicative of impedance of the organ.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein said input radiofrequency signals are indicative of hemodynamic reactance of the organ.

17. The method of claim 12, wherein said signal processor comprises an analog filter for filtering said input radiofrequency signals.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein said processed input signals are indicative of a phase shift of said input radiofrequency signals relative to said output radiofrequency signals transmitted to the organ.

19. The method of claim 12, wherein said signal processor comprises a mixer configured to mix said input radiofrequency signals and said output radiofrequency signals transmitted to the organ.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

(1) The invention is herein described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings. With specific reference now to the drawings in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the preferred embodiments of the present invention only, and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show structural details of the invention in more detail than is necessary for a fundamental understanding of the invention, the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the invention may be embodied in practice.

(2) In the drawings:

(3) FIG. 1 is a schematic illustration of a filtering device, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(4) FIGS. 2a-b show a representative example of dynamically varying frequency bounds, employed according to embodiments of the present invention;

(5) FIG. 2c show a representative example of a dynamically varying frequency band, employed according to embodiments of the present invention;

(6) FIG. 3 is a flowchart diagram of a method suitable for processing input signals, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(7) FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of apparatus for monitoring one or more electrical properties of an organ of a subject, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(8) FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of a signal processing unit, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(9) FIG. 6 is a block diagram of electronic circuitry, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(10) FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of a system for monitoring at least one electrical property of an organ of a subject, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

(11) FIGS. 8a-e are schematic illustrations showing perspective (FIG. 8a), front (FIG. 8b), rear (FIG. 8c), side (FIG. 8d) and top (FIG. 8e) views of a sticker which can be used for transmitting and sensing the radiofrequency signals, according to one embodiment of the present invention;

(12) FIG. 8f is a schematic illustration of a package of several stickers according to an embodiment of the present invention;

(13) FIGS. 9a-d are schematic illustrations of various electronic circuitries, according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention;

(14) FIGS. 10a-10-e, 11a-11e, 12a-12e, 13a-13e, 14a-14e, 15a-15e, 16a-16g and 17a-17g show snapshots of the display of a prototype system, manufactured and configured according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention; and

(15) FIGS. 18a-18b, 19a-19b and 20a-20b are plots of cardiac output as calculated from signals filtered according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

(16) The present embodiments comprise a method, device apparatus and system which can be used for processing signals. Specifically, but not exclusively, the present embodiments can be used for processing radiofrequency signals sensed from an organ of a subject and for monitoring one or more electrical properties of an organ, e.g., for the purpose of determining one or more quantities which are related to electrical properties. Thus, for example, exemplary embodiments of the present invention can be used for calculating stroke volume, cardiac output, brain intra luminal blood volume and/or blood flow. Embodiments of the present invention can also be used for discriminating tissue and/or determining at least one of: body cell mass, fat free mass, total body water, hematocrit of blood, hydration status and circumference of a body segment.

(17) The principles and operation of a method, device apparatus and system according to the present embodiments may be better understood with reference to the drawings and accompanying descriptions.

(18) Before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

(19) Computer programs implementing the method according to embodiments of the present invention can commonly be distributed to users on a distribution medium such as, but not limited to, a floppy disk, CD-ROM and flash memory cards. From the distribution medium, the computer programs can be copied to a hard disk or a similar intermediate storage medium. The computer programs can be run by loading the computer instructions either from their distribution medium or their intermediate storage medium into the execution memory of the computer, configuring the computer to act in accordance with the method of this invention. All these operations are well-known to those skilled in the art of computer systems.

(20) A typical system for monitoring electrical properties of a body section, such as a bioimpedance system, includes a tetrapolar array of circumferential band electrodes connected to the subject at the base of the neck and surrounding the circumference of the lower chest, at the level of the xiphoid process. When a constant magnitude alternating current flows through the upper cervical and lower thoracic band electrodes, a voltage, proportional to the thoracic electrical impedance (or reciprocally proportional to the admittance), is measured between the inner cervical and thoracic band electrodes. The portion of the cardiac synchronous impedance change, temporally concordant with the stroke volume, is ascribed solely and uniquely to volume changes of the aorta during expansion and contraction over the heart cycle. A typical printed circuit board of such system comprises one or more band pass filters, a half-wave rectification circuit and one or more low pass filters.

(21) The present Inventor discovered techniques for reducing the noise associated with conventional systems. As demonstrated in the Examples section that follows, the present Inventor succeeded in reducing noise introduced due to patient agitation or other physiological phenomena like breathing. The present Inventor discovered techniques for separating and differentiating between cardiovascular bioreactance signals and respiratory bioreactance signals, where the latter are typically much larger than the former.

(22) The present Inventor has realized that the noise level is proportional to the bandwidth of the band pass filter and that a considerable portion of the noise passes the band pass filter hence being folded into the half-wave rectification circuit.

(23) The present Inventor also discovered techniques for reducing or eliminating AM noise hence significantly improving the ability to provide accurate measurement.

(24) Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 illustrates a filtering device 10, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Device 10 comprises a first input unit 12 which receives an input signal 16 pertaining to one or more electrical properties of an organ of a subject. For example, signal 16 can relate to the hemodynamic reactance of the organ.

(25) As used herein, hemodynamic reactance refers to the imaginary part of the impedance. Techniques for extracting the imaginary part from the total impedance are known in the art. Typically, such extraction is performed at hardware level but the use of algorithm at a software level is not excluded from the scope of the present invention. Signal 16 can be provided, for example, by processing radiofrequency signals sensed from the organ, as further detailed hereinunder.

(26) In various exemplary embodiments of the invention device 10 further comprises a second input unit 14 which receives data 18 pertaining to a physiological condition of the subject. The physiological condition is preferably, but not obligatorily, the heart rate of the subject, and the data pertaining to the physiological condition can be analog data or digital data, as desired. While the embodiments below are described with a particular emphasis to physiological condition which is a heart rate, it is to be understood that more detailed reference to the heart rate is not to be interpreted as limiting the scope of the invention in any way. For example, in exemplary embodiments of the present invention the physiological condition is a ventilation rate of the subject, a repetition rate of a particular muscle unit and/or one or more characteristics of an action potential sensed electromyography.

(27) Device 10 further comprises a filtering unit 20 which filters the input signal 16 to provide a filtered signal 22. In various exemplary embodiments of the invention the filtering is according to a frequency band which is dynamically adapted in response to a change in the physiological condition of the subject. It was found by the Inventor of the present invention that the dynamical adaptation of the frequency band to the physiological condition of the subject can significantly reduce the influence of unrelated signals on the measured or monitoring of electrical properties of the body section.

(28) The adaptation of the frequency band to the physiological condition can be according to any adaptation scheme known in the art. For example, one or more parameters of the frequency band (e.g., lower bound, upper bound, bandwidth, central frequency) can be a linear function of a parameter characterizing the physiological condition. Such parameter can be, for example, the number of heart beats per minute.

(29) A representative example of a dynamically varying frequency bounds, employed according to embodiments of the present invention by unit 20, is illustrated in FIGS. 2a-b. Shown in FIGS. 2a-b is the functional dependence of the frequency bounds (upper bound in FIG. 2a and lower bound in FIG. 2b) on the heart rate of the subject. As shown in FIG. 2a, the upper bound of the frequency band varies linearly such that at a heart rate of about 60 beats per minute (bpm) the upper bound is about 6 Hz, and at a heart rate of about 180 bpm the upper bound is about 9 Hz. Preferably, the upper bound is about 6+1.5[(HR/60)1] Hz at all times, where HR is the heart rate of the subject in units of bpm. As shown in FIG. 2b, the lower bound of the frequency band varies linearly such that at a heart rate of about 60 the lower bound is about 0.9 Hz bpm and at a heart rate of about 180 bpm the lower bound is about 2.7 Hz. The lower bound is about 0.9(HR/60) Hz at all times.

(30) As used herein the term about refers to 10%.

(31) A dynamically varying band pass filter (BPF) characterized by the frequency bounds described above is illustrated in FIG. 2c. As shown, each heart rate is associated with a frequency band defined by a lower bound and an upper bound. For example, for a heart rate of 60 bpm, FIG. 2c depicts a BPF in which the lower bound is about 0.9 Hz and the upper bound is about 6 Hz.

(32) It is to be understood that the values presented above and the functional relations illustrated in FIGS. 2a-b are exemplary embodiments and should not be considered as limiting the scope of the present invention in any way. In other exemplary embodiments, the functional relations between the frequency band and the physiological condition can have different slopes and/or offsets, or they can be non-linear.

(33) FIG. 3 is a flowchart diagram of a method suitable for processing input signals, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention. The method can be executed by activating filtering device 10 or using any other filtering device supplemented by appropriate circuitry. Selected steps of the method can be embodied in many forms. For example, the selected steps can be embodied in on a tangible medium such as a computer for performing the selected steps. The selected steps can be embodied on a computer readable medium, comprising computer readable instructions for carrying out the selected steps. The selected steps can also be embodied in electronic device having digital computer capabilities arranged to run the computer program on the tangible medium or execute the instruction on a computer readable medium.

(34) The method begins at step 30 and continues to step 31 in which the physiological condition of the subject is determined. The physiological condition can be, as stated, a heart rate and it can be determined using any procedure known in the art, such as, but not limited to, analysis of ECG signals or the like. The method continues to step 32 in which a frequency band is selected based on the physiological condition of the subject as further detailed hereinabove, and proceeds to step 33 in which the input signals are filtered according to frequency band. In various exemplary embodiments of the invention the method loops back to step 31 so as to dynamically adapt the frequency band in response to a change in the physiological condition.

(35) The method ends at step 34.

(36) A particular advantage of the device and method of the present embodiments is that they can be implemented in many systems designed for measuring or monitoring electrical properties of body sections, thereby improving their performance, e.g., by increasing their signal to noise ratio at least for situations in which the amount of noise is high. Representative examples of such systems include, without limitation, a system for monitoring blood flow, cardiac output and/or stroke volume, which can be similar to or based on the systems disclosed in U.S. Published Application No. 2006020033 and International Patent Publication No. WO2006/087696, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference; a system for predicting body cell mass, fat free mass and/or total body water of a subject, which can be similar to or based on the system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,689, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference; a system for determining hematocrit of blood in a body part of a subject, which can be similar to or based on the system disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,642,734, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference; a system for monitoring hydration status of a subject, which can be similar to or based on the system disclosed in U.S. Published Application No. 20030120170, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference; a system for discriminating tissue, which can be similar to or based on the system disclosed in U.S. Published Application No. 20060085048, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference; and a system for calculating the circumference of a body segment which can be similar to or based on the system disclosed in U.S. Published Application No. 20060122540, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

(37) Reference is now made to FIG. 4 which is a schematic illustration of apparatus 40 for monitoring one or more electrical properties of an organ of a subject 121, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

(38) Apparatus 40 comprises an input unit 42 for receiving input radiofrequency signals sensed from the organ. The input radiofrequency signals typically comprise radiofrequency signals related to the electrical properties of the organ (e.g., bioimpedance which may generally relate to the impedance and/or hemodynamic reactance of the organ). The signals are sensed from one or more sensing locations 48 on the organ of subject 121 and are originated by output radiofrequency signals 124 generated by a radiofrequency generator 122. The input radiofrequency signals, however, can include one or more noise components, which may be introduced into the signal due to various reasons, e.g., subject agitation or breathing. In various exemplary embodiments of the invention apparatus 40 is capable of reducing or eliminating these noise components.

(39) Apparatus 40 further comprises a signal processing unit 44 which processes the input radiofrequency signals. The processing may include, for example, mixing, demodulation, determination of phase shift, analog filtering, sampling and any combination thereof. Signal processing unit 44 may or may not be in communication with radiofrequency generator 122, as desired. A representative example of signal processing unit 44 is provided hereinunder with reference to FIG. 5.

(40) Apparatus 40 further comprises a filtering unit 46 which filters the processed input signals. Unit 46 preferably performs the filtration operation in the frequency domain. Thus, in various exemplary embodiments of the invention, a series of samples of the processed radiofrequency signals are transformed, e.g., by a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT), to provide a spectral decomposition of the signals in the frequency domain. The transformation to the frequency domain can be done by a data processor. Algorithms for performing such transformations are known to those skilled in the art of signal processing.

(41) The obtained spectral decomposition of the signal is filtered by unit 46 which typically eliminates one or more of the frequencies in the spectrum, depending on the upper and lower frequency bounds of the filter employed by unit 46. Unit 46 preferably employs a dynamically variable filter. For example, unit 46 can comprise filtering device 10 as described above.

(42) Once filtered, the signals are transmitted to a monitoring unit 52 which monitors the electrical property or properties of the organ based on filtered signals. Unit 52 can monitor the electrical property by recording it and/or transmitting it to an external device, such as a display device and/or a computer. The dynamically variable filter can be adapted in response to a change in the physiological condition of the subject, as further detailed hereinabove.

(43) Apparatus 40 is optionally and preferably designed for determining a phase shift of signals 126 relative to signals 124. This can be done using a phase shift determinator 50 (not shown, see FIG. 5) which can operate according to any known technique for determining a phase shift. The phase shift can be determined for any frequency component of the spectrum of radiofrequency signals received from the organ. For example, in one embodiment, the phase shift is determined from the base frequency component, in another embodiment the phase shift is determined from the second frequency component, and so on. Alternatively the phase shift can be determined using several frequency components, e.g., using an appropriate averaging algorithm.

(44) It was discovered by the Inventor of the present invention that the phase shift of the input signals, as received from the organ, relative to the output signals as generated by generator 122, is indicative of the blood flow in the organ. Thus, according to the presently preferred embodiment of the invention the blood flow is determined using the phase shift .

(45) The advantage of using for determining the blood flow is that the relation between the blood flow and depends on fewer measurement-dependent quantities as compared to prior art determination techniques in which the impedance is used. Specifically, it was found by the Inventor of the present invention that there is a linear relationship between and the blood flow, with a proportion coefficient comprising the systolic ejection time, T. For example, the stroke volume SV can be calculated using the relation SV=const.T, and the cardiac output CO can be calculated using the relation CO=const.THR, where HR is the heart rate of the subject (e.g., in units of beats per minute), and const. a constant which can be found, for example, using a calibration curve. As will be appreciated by one ordinarily skilled in the art, the absence of L and Z.sub.0 from the formulae for SV and CO significantly reduces the uncertainty in the obtained values because there is no entanglement between the obtained values and errors associated with the measurement of L and Z.sub.0.

(46) In various exemplary embodiments of the invention apparatus 40 comprises a data processor 142, configured for calculating at least one quantity using the filtered signal. Data processor 142 can also be employed by unit 46 for performing the transformation to the frequency domain and/or eliminating the frequency components according to the dynamically variable frequency bounds.

(47) Many quantities may be calculated by data processor 142. For example, in various exemplary embodiments of the invention processor 142 calculates blood-volume related quantities, such as, but not limited to, a stroke volume, a cardiac output and a brain intra luminal blood volume. In the embodiments in which data processor 142 is employed, monitoring unit 46 can monitor the quantity calculated by processor 142. When apparatus 40 codetermines the phase shift, processor 142 can calculate the quantity based on the phase shift.

(48) Reference is now made to FIG. 5 which schematically illustrates signal processing unit 44, according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention. Unit 44 preferably comprises a mixer 128, electrically communicating with generator 122, for mixing signals 124 and signals 126, so as to provide a mixed radiofrequency signal. Signals 124 and 126 may be inputted into mixer 128 through more than one channel, depending on optional analog processing procedures (e.g., amplification) which may be performed prior to the mixing.

(49) Mixer 128 may be any known radiofrequency mixer, such as, but not limited to, double-balanced radiofrequency mixer and unbalanced radiofrequency mixer. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the mixed radiofrequency signal is composed of a plurality of radiofrequency signals, which may be, in one embodiment, a radiofrequency sum and a radiofrequency difference. A sum and a difference may be achieved, e.g., by selecting mixer 128 such that signals 124 and signals 126 are multiplied thereby. Since a multiplication between two frequencies is equivalent to a frequency sum and a frequency difference, mixer 128 outputs a signal which is composed of the desired radiofrequency sum and radiofrequency difference.

(50) The advantage in the production of a radiofrequency sum and a radiofrequency difference is that whereas the radiofrequency sum includes both the signal, which is indicative of the electrical property, and a considerable amount of electrical noise, the radiofrequency difference is approximately noise-free.

(51) It was found by the present Inventor that this technique is suitable for minimizing the electrical noise even when the effect of interest is smaller than the measured quantity by 2-4 orders of magnitude.

(52) According to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention unit 44 further comprises a phase shift determinator 50 for determining the phase shift of the input signals relative to the output signal. Phase shift determinator 50 can determine the phase shift according to any technique known in the art. For example, the phase shift can be determined from the radiofrequency difference outputted from mixer 128.

(53) According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention processing unit 44 further comprises electronic circuitry 132, which filters out a portion of the signal such that a remaining portion of the signal is characterized by a substantially increased signal-to-noise ratio.

(54) Circuitry 132 is better illustrated in FIG. 6. According to an embodiment of the present invention circuitry 132 comprises a low pass filter 134 to filter out the high frequency content of the signal. Low pass filter 134 is particularly useful in the embodiment in which mixer 128 outputs a sum and a difference, in which case low pass filter 134 filters out the radiofrequency sum and leaves the approximately noise-free radiofrequency difference. Low pass filter 134 may be designed and constructed in accordance with the radiofrequency difference of a particular system which employs apparatus 40. A judicious design of filter 134 substantially reduces the noise content of the remaining portion. In a conventional bioimpedance system, for example, a substantial amount of the noise of the received signal is folded into the remaining signal, which is thus characterized by a bandwidth of about 2 kilohertz. It has been found by the inventor of the present invention that by including output radiofrequency signal 124 and by mixing it with input radiofrequency signal 126, the noise in the resulting signal is characterized by a bandwidth that is at least one order of magnitude below the noise bandwidth of conventional systems.

(55) In various exemplary embodiments of the invention mixer 128 and circuitry 132 are designed and constructed for increasing the signal-to-noise ratio by at least 20 dB, more preferably by 25 dB, most preferably by 30 dB.

(56) Circuitry 132 preferably comprises an analog amplification circuit 136 for amplifying the remaining portion of the signal. The construction and design of analog amplification circuit 136 is not limited, provided circuit 136 is capable of amplifying the signal. A non limiting example of amplification circuit 136 is further detailed herein below in the Examples section that follows.

(57) According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention circuitry 132 further comprises a digitizer 138 for digitizing the signal. The digitization of the signal is useful for further digital processing of the digitized signal, e.g., by a microprocessor.

(58) Optionally, circuitry comprises a differentiator 140 (either a digital differentiator or an analog differentiator) for performing at least one time-differentiation of the measured impedance to obtain a respective derivative (e.g., a first derivative, a second derivative, etc.) of the electrical property. Differentiator 140 may comprise any known electronic functionality (e.g., a chip) that is capable of performing analog or digital differentiation. Time-derivatives are useful, for example, when the electrical property is bioimpedance and the apparatus is employed in a system for measuring stroke volume or cardiac output, as further detailed hereinafter.

(59) According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention signal processing unit 44 comprises an envelope elimination unit 135 which reduces or, more preferably, eliminates amplitude modulation of signals 126. Optionally and preferably, unit 135 maintains the phase modulation of signals 126. The input to envelope elimination unit 135 typically carries a substantial amount of AM noise, which can be described, without limitation as a signal .sub.26=(t)cos(t(t)), which contains both phase and amplitude modulation. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention unit 135 generates signals having a substantial constant envelope, e.g., .sub.26=.sub.0 cos(t+(t)), where .sub.0 is substantially a constant. The output of unit 135 thus represents the phase (or frequency) modulation of signal 126. Unit 135 can employ, for example, a limiter amplifier which amplifies signals 126 and limits their amplitude such that the amplitude modulation is removed. The advantage of the removal of the amplitude modulation is that it allows a better determination of the phase shift between the input and output signals, as further detailed hereinabove.

(60) Reference is now made to FIG. 7, which is a schematic illustration of system 120 for monitoring at least one electrical property of an organ of a subject, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. System 120 preferably comprises a radiofrequency generator 122, for generating output radiofrequency signals. Generator 122 may be embodied as any radiofrequency generator, such as, but not limited to, radiofrequency generator 112 of system 110. System 120 further comprises a plurality of electrodes 125, which are connected to the skin of subject 121. Electrodes 125 transmit output radiofrequency signals 124, generated by generator 122 and sense input radiofrequency signals 126 originated from the organ of subject 121.

(61) System 120 preferably comprises any of the components of apparatus 40 described above. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention system 120 further comprises a detector 129 for detecting a voltage drop on a portion of the body of subject 121 defined by the positions of electrodes 125. In response to the detected voltage, detector 129 preferably generates signals which are indicative of impedance of the respective portion of the body. In this embodiment, the stroke volume can be calculated using (dX/dt).sub.max, as further detailed hereinabove. Knowing the stroke volume, the cardiac output is calculated by multiplying the stroke volume by the heart rate of the subject. More preferably, detector 129 generates signals which are indicative of a hemodynamic reactance, X.

(62) The blood flow determination provided by system 120 may be used both for diagnostic and for treatment. Hence, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, system 120 may further comprise a pacemaker 144. In this embodiment, the data processor (not shown, see FIG. 4) is preferably programmed to electronically control pacemaker 144 in accordance with the calculated quantity. For example, in one embodiment, the data processor calculates the cardiac output and sends signals to pacemaker 144 which controls, substantially in real-time, the heart rate of subject 121, so as to improve the cardiac output.

(63) Additionally or alternatively, system 120 may also comprise a cardiac assist device 148, preferably constructed and design for increasing the cardiac output. Cardiac assist devices are known in the art and typically comprise a reinforcing member which restricts an expansion of a portion of the heart tissue, so that the cardiac output is increased. In this embodiment, the data processor is preferably programmed to electronically control device 148 in accordance with the calculated cardiac output, so that both the determination and the improvement of the cardiac output are automatically performed by system 120.

(64) According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention system 120 comprises a drug administrating device 146. Device 146 serves for administrating drugs to subject 121. In this embodiment, the data processor is preferably programmed to electronically control device 146, in accordance with the value of the calculated quantity. For example, if the calculated quantity is the brain intra luminal blood volume, then, depending on the value of the blood volume, the data processor sends signal to device 146 and thereby controls the amount and/or type of medications administered to subject 121.

(65) It is to be understood that any number of electrodes of system 125 or connection configurations of electrodes 125 to subject 121 are not excluded from the present invention. Any type of electrode, in any combination, may be used, for measuring blood flow in any artery of the body, such as, but not limited to, the external carotid artery, the internal carotid artery, the ulnar artery, the radial artery, the brachial artery, the common iliac artery, the external iliac artery, the posterior tibial artery, the anterior tibial artery, the peroneal artery, the lateral plantar artery, the medial plantar artery and the deep plantar artery.

(66) When system 120 is used together with other systems it is desired to minimize the area occupied by electrodes 125 so as not to interfere the operation of the other systems. For example, in intensive care units, the subjects are oftentimes connected to ECG leads, arterial line, central venous line, brain stem evoked response equipment, chest tubes, GI tube, intravenous and the like.

(67) FIGS. 8a-e are schematic illustrations showing perspective (FIG. 8a), front (FIG. 8b), rear (FIG. 8c), side (FIG. 8d) and top (FIG. 8e) views of a sticker 141 which can be used for transmitting and sensing the radiofrequency signals, according to one embodiment of the present invention. The sticker comprises electrical contacts 145 being as fixed and predetermined distance therebetween, thus reducing any the effect of variable inter-electrode distance on the measurement. Two such contacts 145a and 145b are shown in FIG. 8b, but any number of contacts can be employed, with the provision that there are at least two contacts. The sticker can be connected to system 120 via a connector 143. Connector 143 is optionally foldable to facilitate packaging and storage of sticker 141. In various exemplary embodiments of the invention connector 143 includes two conductive members 149a and 149b devoid of electrical communication therebetween. Each of electrical contacts 145a and 145b is in electrical communication with one conductive member of connector 143 via a different internal conducting line 147a and 147b. Thus, in the present embodiments, sticker can be connected to system 120 using a single line, because connector 143 interfaces communication for both contacts.

(68) FIG. 8f is a schematic illustration of a package of several stickers (four such stickers are shown in the exemplary illustration of FIG. 80, where each sticker can be similar to sticker 141 described above. Also shown in FIG. 8f are exemplary dimensions and distances of the package and the individual stickers.

(69) Following are technical preferred values which may be used for selective steps and parts of the embodiments described above.

(70) The output radiofrequency signals are preferably from about 10 KHz to about 200 KHz in frequency and from about 10 mV to about 200 mV in magnitude; the input radiofrequency signals are preferably about 75 KHz in frequency and about 20 mV in magnitude; a typical impedance which can be measured by the present embodiments is from about 5 Ohms to about 75 Ohms; the resulting signal-to-noise ratio of the present embodiments is at least 40 dB; low pass filter 134 is preferably characterized by a cutoff frequency of about 35 Hz and digitizer 138 preferably samples the signals at a rate of about 500-1000 samples per second.

(71) Additional objects, advantages, and novel features of the present invention will become apparent to one ordinarily skilled in the art upon examination of the following examples, which are not intended to be limiting. Additionally, each of the various embodiments and aspects of the present invention as delineated hereinabove and as claimed in the claims section below finds experimental support in the following examples.

EXAMPLES

(72) Reference is now made to the following examples, which together with the above descriptions, illustrate the invention in a non limiting fashion.

Example 1

Prototype System

(73) A prototype of a system for measuring blood flow in an organ of a subject according to the above description was constructed.

(74) The prototype system includes:

(75) (a) a self made radiofrequency generator generating output radiofrequency signals, 70 Khz in frequency and 20 mV in magnitude;

(76) (b) a plurality of electrodes, as described in FIGS. 8a-d; and

(77) (c) a double balanced mixer, purchased from Mini-Circuits, a global company having a headquarter in Brooklyn, N.Y., was used for providing a radiofrequency sum and a radiofrequency difference, as detailed above.

(78) The prototype system further includes electronic circuitry formed in a printed circuit board. Several electronic circuitries were designed and manufactured, so as to investigate the correlation between the qualities of the results, the design of the electronic circuitry and the number of electrodes. The various electronic circuitries are schematically illustrated in FIGS. 9a-d.

(79) FIG. 9a shows a block diagram of electronic circuitry to be used with three electrodes. The electrodes leads are designated in FIG. 9a by E.sub.1, E.sub.2 and I.sub.1, where the output radiofrequency signals, generated by the radiofrequency generator (designated OSC), are outputted through E.sub.1 and E.sub.2 and the input radiofrequency signals, as measured of the body are inputted through I.sub.1.

(80) The input signals and are channeled through a differential amplifier G.sub.1, a band pass filter BPF and a differential amplifier G.sub.2. The input signals are channeled through a differential amplifier G.sub.3, a band pass filter BPF and an envelope elimination unit EEU. The EEU eliminates the amplitude modulation from the input signal. Both input and output signals are mixed by mixer DMB, to form, as stated, a frequency sum and a frequency difference. A low pass filter LPF filters out the frequency sum and the resulting signal (carrying the frequency difference) is further amplified by additional differential amplifiers G.sub.5, G.sub.6 and G.sub.7. Once amplified, the signal is digitized by an analog to digital digitizer and passed, via a USB communication interface to a processing and display unit. The processing unit includes a dynamically variable filter according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention.

(81) FIG. 9b shows a block diagram of electronic circuitry to be used with two electrodes of brain intra-luminal blood volume measurements. As there are only two electrodes E.sub.2 and I.sub.1 are combined to a single lead I.sub.1.

(82) The output signals and are channeled through a differential amplifier G.sub.1, a band pass filter BPF and a differential amplifier G.sub.2. The input signals are channeled through a differential amplifier G.sub.2, a band pass filter BPF and an envelope elimination unit EEU which eliminates the amplitude modulation from the input signal. Both input and output signals are mixed by mixer DMB, to form the frequency sum and difference. The low pass filter LPF filters out the frequency sum and the resulting signal is further amplified by additional differential amplifiers G.sub.4, G.sub.5 and G.sub.6. As in the case of three electrodes, the signal is digitized by an analog to digital digitizer and passed, via a USB communication interface to a processing and display unit.

(83) FIG. 9c shows a block diagram of electronic circuitry to be used with four electrodes. The four leads, designated E.sub.1, E.sub.2, I.sub.1 and I.sub.2, where the output radiofrequency signals, generated by radiofrequency generator OSC, are outputted through E.sub.1 and E.sub.2 and the input radiofrequency signals, as measured of the body are inputted through I.sub.1 and I.sub.2. In addition, the four leads, E.sub.1, E.sub.2, I.sub.1 and I.sub.2 are connected to the body through capacitors designated C.sub.1, C.sub.2, C.sub.3 and C.sub.4.

(84) The principles of the circuitry of FIG. 9c are similar to the principles of the circuitry of FIG. 9a with three electrodes. The advantage of the circuitry of FIG. 9c is that by using both input leads I.sub.1 and I.sub.2 (as opposed to one input lead I.sub.1 of FIG. 9a), effects of impedance differences between the electrodes and the body can be minimized. Specifically, the influence of the voltage drop I.sub.1 and I.sub.2 is controlled by the characteristic impedance of the differential amplifier G.sub.3, which is selected to be sufficiently large so that any impedance changes due to the contact between the body and the electrode is negligible, compared to the impedance of G.sub.3.

(85) FIG. 9d shows a block diagram of the analog amplification circuit, which was used to amplify the radiofrequency signal after the low pass filtering in which the radiofrequency sum was filtered out.

Example 2

Clinical Trials

(86) The prototype system described in Example 1 was tested on human volunteers. The present Example includes a representative collection of trials performed on four of the volunteers.

(87) Methods

(88) Each subject was connected to four electrodes of the prototype system. Two electrodes served for input/output radiofrequency signals and two served as ECG leads.

(89) Radiofrequency signals pertaining to hemodynamic reactance were sampled at a sampling rate of 500 samples per second during continuous time intervals of 8 seconds. The signals were filtered by an analog low pass filter of 9 Hz.

(90) ECG signals were sampled at the same rate (500 samples per seconds) and filtered using an analog filter of 250 Hz.

(91) In all the trials, the signals acquired from each subject were filtered using two types of digital filters: a fixed filter with a lower bound of 0.9 Hz and an upper bound of 6 Hz, and a dynamically variable filter in which the frequency bounds were varied in response to changes in the heart rate of the respective subject. To this end, the linear dependence as illustrated in FIGS. 2a-b was used.

(92) Results

(93) FIGS. 10a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during a trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 1. Signals were acquired while the subject was stable (heart rate of 95 bpm).

(94) FIGS. 10a-b show results obtained using a fixed filter (FIG. 10a) and dynamically variable filter (FIG. 10b). In each of FIGS. 10a-b, there are seven curves, designated, from top to bottom, I, II, dI, dII, N, dN and ddN. The four top curves (I, II, dI and dII) are ECG signals (leads I and II) and derivatives thereof (dI and dII, respectively). The three lowermost curves (N, dN and ddN) correspond to a hemodynamic reactance (N), its first time-derivative (dN) and second time-derivative (ddN). The right pane of FIG. 10a show various calculated values, such as heart rate (BPM), cardiac output (CO), stroke volume (SV), ventricular ejection time (VETM), and the like.

(95) FIGS. 10c-d demonstrate the data analysis performed to provide the results presented in FIGS. 10a-b. FIG. 10c demonstrates application of the fixed filter on the ECG signal, FIG. 10d demonstrates the application of the fixed on the hemodynamic reactance signal, and FIG. 10e demonstrates the application of the dynamically variable filter on the hemodynamic reactance signal. In each of FIGS. 10c-d there are five graphical representations, corresponding to, from top to bottom: (i) the respective signal before filtering, (ii) the respective signal after filtering, (iii) the spectrum (Fourier decomposition) of the respective signal before filtering, (iv) the spectrum of the respective signal after filtering and (v) phase shift data. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the filter for the ECG signal were 1.2 Hz and 40 Hz, respectively; the lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 0.9 Hz and 6 Hz, respectively; and the lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 1.4 Hz and 6.9 Hz, respectively.

(96) In FIG. 10c, the abscissae are scaled to 300 ms per division in the time domain representations, and 3 Hz per division in all frequency domain representations. In FIGS. 10d-e, the abscissae are scaled to 300 ms per division in the time domain representations, and 0.5 Hz per division in the frequency domain representations.

(97) FIGS. 11a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during another trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 1. In this trial, the subject was also stable (heart rate of 114 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 11a-e correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-e.

(98) The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trial above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 1.7 Hz and 7.4 Hz, respectively.

(99) FIGS. 12a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during another trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 1. In this trial, the subject was agitated (heart rate of 140 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 12a-e correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-e. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 2.1 Hz and 8 Hz, respectively.

(100) FIGS. 13a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during another trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 1. In this trial, the subject was also agitated (heart rate of 137 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 13a-e correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-e. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 2.1 Hz and 7.9 Hz, respectively.

(101) FIGS. 14a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during a trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 2. In this trial, the subject was agitated (heart rate of 121 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 14a-e correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-e. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 1.8 Hz and 7.5 Hz, respectively.

(102) FIGS. 15a-e show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during another trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 2. In this trial, the subject was also agitated (heart rate of 123 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 15a-e correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-e. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 1.8 Hz and 7.6 Hz, respectively.

(103) FIGS. 16a-g show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during a trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 3. In this trial, the subject was agitated (heart rate of 121 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 16a-b correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10a-b, and the graphical representations in FIGS. 16e-g correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 10c-e. FIGS. 16c-d are respective zoom-in images of FIGS. 16a-b. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 1.8 Hz and 7.5 Hz, respectively.

(104) FIGS. 17a-g show snapshots of the display of the prototype system obtained during a trial in which the electrodes of the system were connected to subject No. 4. In this trial, the subject was agitated (heart rate of 139 bpm). The graphical representations in FIGS. 17a-g correspond to the same observables as FIGS. 16a-g. FIGS. 17c-d are respective zoom-in images of FIG. 167-b. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the fixed filters were the same as in the trials above. The lower and upper frequency bounds of the dynamically variable filter for the hemodynamic reactance signal were 2.1 Hz and 8 Hz, respectively.

(105) As shown in FIGS. 10a-17g, the dynamically varying filter significantly improves the quality of the results, particularly when the subjects are agitated (FIGS. 12a-17g). Additionally, the dynamically variable filtering technique of the present embodiments allows consistent calculation of CO values. For example, as demonstrated in the trials with Subject No. 3 (see FIGS. 16a-e), the two filtering techniques resulted in different CO values: 35.6 L/min for the fixed filtering technique and 21.99 L/min for dynamically variable filtering technique. Similar improvements were observed in other subjects.

(106) Plots of cardiac output as calculated from signals filtered using the two filtering techniques are shown in FIGS. 18a-b, 19a-b and 20a-b for subjects Nos. 2, 3 and 4, respectively. FIGS. 18a, 19a and 20a show results obtained using the dynamically variable filter of the present embodiments and FIGS. 18b, 19b and 20b show results obtained using fixed filter. As demonstrated, the CO values obtained using the dynamically variable filter of the present embodiments are more accurate.

(107) Table 1 below summarizes the cardiac output results obtained for the above trials.

(108) TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Heart filter Trial Rate frequency CO No. Subject [bpm] type band [Hz] [L/min] 1 1 95 fixed 0.6-9.0 14.62 variable 1.4-6.9 14.68 2 1 114 fixed 0.6-9.0 18.81 variable 1.7-7.4 19.77 3 1 140 fixed 0.6-9.0 18.55 variable 2.1-8 18.41 4 1 137 fixed 0.6-9.0 15.82 variable 2.1-7.9 17.05 5 2 121 fixed 0.6-9.0 13.92 variable 1.8-7.5 18.47 6 2 123 fixed 0.6-9.0 19.42 variable 1.8-7.6 17.84 7 3 121 fixed 0.6-9.0 35.60 variable 1.8-7.5 21.99 8 4 139 fixed 0.6-9.0 24.94 variable 2.1-8.0 24.37

(109) Although the invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments thereof, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and broad scope of the appended claims. All publications, patents and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated in their entirety by reference into the specification, to the same extent as if each individual publication, patent or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated herein by reference. In addition, citation or identification of any reference in this application shall not be construed as an admission that such reference is available as prior art to the present invention.