ARRANGEMENT FOR MODIFYING AN INTERNAL EYE PRESSURE IN VIVO

Abstract

The invention relates to an arrangement and a software-based application for modifying an internal eye pressure in vivo, having modulating means for modifying the internal eye pressure and sensor means for capturing the internal eye pressure in vivo, and enabling easily operated and quickly reacting changes to the internal eye pressure while avoiding the disadvantages of the prior art, proposing that the modulating means are implemented for modifying the internal eye pressure as a function of the internal eye pressure captured by the sensor means.

Claims

1. A system for in vivo adjustment of internal eye pressure, the system comprising: one or more modulating means for modifying an internal eye pressure; and one or more sensors for capturing the internal eye pressure in vivo, the one or more modulating means modify the internal eye pressure as a function of the internal eye pressure that has been captured by the one or more sensors.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more modulating means dispense, across a surface, at least one pharmacological active substance that modifies the internal eye pressure.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein the one or more modulating means modify an area of the surface.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more modulating means comprise one or more means for modifying an outflow rate of aqueous humor from an.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more modulating means comprise one or more drainage means that modify an outflow rate of aqueous humor from an eye.

6. The system according to claim 1, further comprising one or more data processing devices that perform steps comprising: in response to receiving values captured by the one or more sensors, determining a specified value relating to the internal eye pressure; and providing the specified value to the one or more modulating means.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein the one or more sensors wirelessly transfer data relating to the internal eye pressure to at least one of the one or more modulating means or the one or more data processing devices.

8. The system according to claim 6, wherein the one or more modulating means wirelessly transfer data relating to the one or more modulating means to the one or more data processing devices.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more processors use patient-specific information relating to the internal eye pressure to determine a patient-specific internal eye pressure value.

10. The system according to claim 6, wherein the one or more data processing devices are user-configurable.

11. The system according to claim 6, further comprising one or more energy sources disposed outside of the eye, one or more energy sources supplying to at least one of the one or more modulating means, the one or more data processing devices, or the one or more sensors.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the one or more modulating means or the one or more sensors comprise one or more nanoelectronic components.

13. A computer program product comprising at least one tangible computer-readable medium storing one or more sequences of instructions, wherein execution of the one or more sequences of instructions by one or more processors causes the one or more processors to perform steps comprising: initiating a wireless communication with one or more modulating means to cause the one or more modulating means to modify an internal eye pressure; and initiating a wireless communication with one or more for capturing the internal eye pressure in vivo.

14. The software-based application according to claim 13, wherein the one or more processors perform steps comprising receiving internal eye pressure data that has been captured in vivo and has been wirelessly transmitted by one or more sensors.

15. The software-based application according to claim 14, further performing steps comprising using values captured by the one or more sensors to determine a patient-specific internal eye pressure value.

16. The software-based application according to claim 14, wherein the individual patient-specific internal eye pressure value is wirelessly transmitted to the one or more modulating means.

17. The software-based application according to claim 14, further performing steps comprising at least one of inputting or outputting information relating to the internal eye pressure.

Description

[0028] The figures in the drawing show, in detail:

[0029] FIG. 1A schematic flowchart for regulating the internal eye pressure by means of an arrangement according to the invention, wherein the patient performs the measurements manually;

[0030] FIG. 2A schematic flowchart for regulating the internal eye pressure by means of an arrangement according to the invention, wherein the measurements are performed continuously and automatically; and

[0031] FIG. 3A schematic flowchart for regulating the internal eye pressure by means of an arrangement according to the invention, wherein the available information is evaluated by a physician and compiled in a finding.

[0032] FIG. 1 shows a schematic flowchart of a control mechanism by means of an arrangement 1 according to the invention for automated regulating of the internal eye pressure. To this end, the internal eye pressure 122 is measured by the internal eye pressure sensor 102 implanted in the eye 100. Said measuring is performed either continuously or at defined points in time determined by the physician 110 or by the patient 101.

[0033] The raw data of the internal eye pressure sensor 123 is transferred to external devices 104, for example, having an RFID chip.

[0034] The external devices 104, for example, potentially mounted in multifunctional eyeglasses, a handheld device of the patient, or a pillow, actuate the valve 103 for regulating the internal eye pressure by means of a magnetic, thermal, acoustic, or optical signal 124. The opening cross section of the valve 103 or the opening resistance of the valve 103 is then modified in order to control the draining of the aqueous humor. The state, particularly the opening cross section 125 of the valve 103 or the opening resistance 125 of the valve 103, is transmitted back to the external device 104. The individual patient information 127, particularly the measured internal eye pressure 122, the opening cross section 125 of the valve 103 or the opening resistance 125 of the valve 103, is transmitted to a cloud-based database 105 and saved there.

[0035] An app according to the invention can be installed on a handheld device 104 of the patient, for example, by means of which the patient 101 can read or even influence the state of the valves 103.

[0036] The cloud-based database 105 has a patient portal 108 enabling access to the patient data 129 output by the cloud-based database 105. A patient diary 128 can be kept by means of the cloud-based database 105. The patient can enter data via the patient diary 128 for transmitting to medical personnel 110. According to the invention, the patient diary 128 can be entered by means of the app, on a mobile terminal device of the patient 101.

[0037] The cloud-based database 105 further comprises a physician access 107 by means of which the medical personnel obtain access to all prepared information 132.

[0038] The system further comprises an artificial intelligence present in an artificial intelligence module 109 (AI module) outside of the eye. The AI module 109 determines a specified value 126 for the internal eye pressure by means of an algorithm, taking into consideration the prepared information 132. Said specified value 126 can be overwritten at any time by medical personnel 110 by means of the physician access 107 and transferred to the AI module 109 as a modified specified value 133. The history 131 of the particular patient is saved in an external database 106, having information about the time curve of the internal eye pressure, as well as therapeutic and diagnostic information. The history 131 is transmitted to the cloud-based database 105, so that said information is taken into consideration when calculating the optimal internal eye pressure for the patient.

[0039] A manual measurement 120a is performed by the patient 101 in the control mechanism having an arrangement 1 according to the invention as shown in FIG. 1. The manual measurement 120a is manually initiated and automatically performed by means of an external device 104, for example, present in multifunctional glasses or a sleep mask. To this end, the internal eye pressure sensor 102 is actuated by means of an RFID chip.

[0040] The measured values 120b, particularly the internal eye pressure and the state of the valves 103 and the drainage systems 103, are transmitted to the external device 104 and provided to the patient 101 by means of the cloud-based database 105. An operator interface 130 is available to the patient 101 in the cloud-based database 105 for entering into the cloud-based database 105 the data of the patient diary 128 and the patient data 129 entered by the medical personnel 110.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 1, all therapy data 120 is transferred to the external device 104 in order to thus produce a closed-loop control circuit between the internal eye pressure sensor 102, valve 103, and drainage system (103) and the information from the cloud-based database 105.

[0042] FIG. 2 makes clear that the measurements, unlike in the flowchart from FIG. 1, are not performed by the patient 101 but rather continuously and automatically, without action by the patient 101. To this end, a specified value 126 is transferred from the AI module 109 to the cloud-based database 105, for example, for transmitting the specified value 126 to the external device 104 and transmitting the specified value to a drug delivery system 103 by means of electronic data transmitting 124.

[0043] The drug delivery system 103 is implemented such that the area of the surface can be modified across which a pharmacological active substance can be dispensed. A precisely metered amount of the pharmacological active substance 121 for modifying the internal eye pressure can thus be dispensed to the eyewash and the internal eye pressure thus modified. The information about the state of the drug delivery system 125a, particularly the portion of the area of the bioactive surfaces covered by the membrane and the portion of the area not covered by the membrane, can be transmitted to the handheld device of the patient by means of a Bluetooth interface, for example.

[0044] The AI module 109 receives a guideline value 133 from the physician access 107 for calculating the specified value 126 for the individual patient. By means of said physician access 107, the physician 110 can intervene at any time and can specify a corresponding guideline value 133 and thus override the specified value 126 determined by the AI module 109. To this end, an app according to the invention can be installed on the PC of the physician 110, for example. The physician 110 can also enter a response 134 to the patient 101 for issuing to the patient 101 by means of the cloud-based database 105, so that communication between the physician 110 and the patient 101 is possible. Because the data transmitting functions by means of Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, or a WWAN interface, it is not necessary that the physician 110 and patient 101 are present at the same location, so that the use of the drug delivery systems 103 or valves 103 is possible in telemedicine in conjunction with the internal eye pressure sensor 102.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 2, the information of the patient diary 128 is transmitted to the cloud-based database 105 by means of the patient access 108 and is forwarded both to the AI module 109 in the form of prepared information 132 as a calculation basis, and to the physician access 107 for monitoring.

[0046] The app, for example, installed on the handheld device 104 of the patient, can be used according to the invention for displaying the prepared information 132.

[0047] FIG. 3 shows a schematic flowchart of a closed-loop control mechanism having an arrangement 1 according to the invention for regulating an internal eye pressure, wherein a physician 110, particularly a telemedicine physician 110, communicates with the AI module 109 and can overwrite the specified value 126 calculated by the AI module 109 with his own or a medical guideline value 133.

[0048] FIG. 3 makes clear that the system provides the possibility for a second physician or telemedicine physician 110a to enter a further guideline value 133a and that said value is also taken into consideration for determining the specified value 126. It is thus possible to obtain a second opinion in the field of telemedicine.

[0049] FIG. 3 shows that, to this end, a finding 135 having a corresponding recommendation for therapy is transmitted from the first physician or telemedicine physician 110 to a second physician or telemedicine physician 110a. The second physician or telemedicine physician 110a can transmit a second guideline value 133 to the patient 101 by means of the physician access 107 and the cloud-based database 105.

[0050] FIG. 3 shows that the processes for transmitting the specified value 126 to the valve 103 are identical to those already explained in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. It is conceivable to combine a system having valves 103 and a drug delivery system 103 as a high level of effectiveness and very good patient 101 compatibility is thereby evident.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

[0051] 1 Arrangement [0052] 100 Eye [0053] 101 Patient [0054] 102 Internal eye pressure sensor [0055] 103 Valve [0056] 103a Drug delivery system [0057] 104 External device [0058] 105 Cloud-based database [0059] 106 External databases [0060] 107 Physician access [0061] 108 Patient access [0062] 109 AI module [0063] 110 Physician [0064] 110a Physician 2 [0065] 120 Therapy information [0066] 120a Manual measurements [0067] 120b Measured values [0068] 121 Pharmacological active substance [0069] 122 Internal eye pressure [0070] 123 Raw data of the internal eye pressure sensor [0071] 124 Electronic data transmission [0072] 125 State of the valve [0073] 125a State of the drug delivery system [0074] 126 Specified value [0075] 127 Individual patient information [0076] 128 Patient diary [0077] 129 Patient data [0078] 130 Operator interface [0079] 131 Patient history [0080] 132 Prepared information [0081] 133 Guideline value [0082] 133a Guideline value 2 [0083] 134 Feedback to the patient [0084] 135 Findings