JP2006320732A - Sleep apnea examining apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sleep apnea examining apparatus provided with a plurality of sensors to be simultaneously used, capable of performing an accurate diagnosis by securing the synchronization among sensing data of the respective sensors even if such sensors as can be independently operated without using easily attachable physical wiring are used. <P>SOLUTION: A temperature sensor S1 for measuring the volume of nasal respiration, a temperature sensor S2 for measuring the volume of oral respiration and a miniaturized acoustic sensor S3 for measuring the snoring sound are connected to a recording device S10 with built-in battery and data storage part. An optical sensor S4 for measuring the oxygen concentration in the blood, an acceleration sensor S5 for measuring the motion of the chest region and an acceleration sensor S6 for measuring the motion of the abdominal region have built-in batteries and data storage parts respectively. Clocks in the recording device S10 and the sensors S4-S6 are adjusted by a base unit S0 before the sensors are lent to a patient. The collected data are sucked in a totalization device P via the base unit S0, so that the data at the same hour can be compared. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a sleep apnea test apparatus comprising a plurality of sensors used for diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome (SAS).

  The sleep apnea syndrome is considered to be one of sleep disorders, and there are two types of tests, sleep polygraphy and screening test equipment. In the screening test apparatus, some of a large number of biological measurement sensors used in polysomnography, such as a snoring sound sensor, a mouth-and-nose airflow sensor, an arterial blood oxygen saturation sensor, a chest motion sensor, and an abdominal motion sensor are used. Diagnosis is performed by analyzing features such as the rate of change of each sensing data obtained from these sensors and the correlation between the data.

  Thus, by measuring with a plurality of sensors, it can be expected that the diagnostic accuracy is improved as compared with the sensing result of a single sensor. In the screening test, these sensors are loaned from a medical institution to a patient. The patient wears it at home, collects data for overnight sleep, brings it to the medical institution at a later date, and analyzes it to an expert.・ It is common to ask for a diagnosis.

On the other hand, the sensing data of each sensor is transmitted to the data recording device to which those sensors are connected. In Patent Document 1, the data recording device is mounted on the patient's waist, and a signal processing circuit or the like is built in the data recording device, so that the sensor portion can be made compact and data can be collected at the home. A device has been proposed.
JP-A-5-200031

  However, in the above prior art, many sensors are connected to the data recording device by wiring. Therefore, as the number of sensors increases, the wiring becomes entangled in a complicated manner, and not only the mounting property is poor, but there is a possibility that accurate measurement cannot be performed due to forgetting connection or incorrect connection. Further, if the posture changes during sleep, the complicated wiring may cause the sensor to come off the body, or the wiring may come off from the data recording device, and the data recording may become unstable. During sleep, you will not be aware of problems such as disconnecting wires, so care must be taken when routing the wiring. If the posture is restricted so that the wiring does not come off, there is a risk of disturbing daily sleep. In such a sleep test at a medical institution, there was no need to worry because the person in charge is waiting, but in the home test, the patient himself is not skilled in measuring equipment, If you are not aware of your mistakes and the reliability of the obtained measurement data is low, it will take time to re-measure it overnight.

  Therefore, it is also conceivable to remove the wiring by mounting a transmitter in the sensor by downsizing the sensor and wirelessly transmitting data to the data recording device. However, if there is an obstacle in the bedroom of the patient's bedroom or if the patient's posture changes greatly, the data recording apparatus cannot perform stable reception, and this may also make the data recording unstable. For example, if no breathing is detected, it cannot be distinguished whether the person is really not breathing or simply could not be received, which affects the diagnosis. If the transmission power is increased to improve communication quality, the battery becomes larger and the sensor becomes heavier, and the sensor attached to the body is likely to come off.

  On the other hand, if data is recorded by each sensor and later retrieved, the wiring is removed and each sensor becomes physically independent, and the complexity is improved. However, there is a problem in that the temporal relationship between the sensors varies, the correlation between the data of the sensors cannot be seen, and accurate diagnosis cannot be performed. Specifically, in the diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome, the frequency of occurrence of apnea for 10 seconds or more is counted. Therefore, in the apnea test in which diagnosis is comprehensively performed from a plurality of measurement data, between each sensor. An error of about 10 seconds has a fatal effect. In particular, if the chest motion sensor and the abdominal motion sensor move up and down together, it can be determined that breathing is normally performed, and if they move up and down in opposite phases, air enters with apnea. However, the diaphragm can be judged to be moving, so, for example, if the respiration rate is 12 (times / minute) and one cycle is 5 seconds, there is a difference of 2.5 seconds between the data. The diagnosis will be reversed.

  An object of the present invention is to use a plurality of sensors that can operate independently without physical wiring with good wearability, and to ensure accurate synchronization between sensing data of each sensor. It is to provide a sleep apnea test apparatus capable of doing so.

  In the sleep apnea test apparatus including a plurality of sleep apnea test sensors used simultaneously for diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome according to the present invention, the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors include: A sensing unit, a clock unit, a storage unit for storing sensing data of the sensing unit, and a sensing unit that performs sensing at a predetermined sampling frequency in response to a clock operation of the clock unit, respectively. And a control unit that adjusts the time of the clock unit in response to a synchronization signal input / output from the external input / output terminal, and for storing the plurality of sleep apnea tests. The sampling frequency in the sensor is an integer multiple of the sampling frequency in the sleep apnea test sensor of one of the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors Characterized in that there.

  According to the above configuration, each sleep apnea test sensor in which a plurality of units are simultaneously used for diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome includes a storage unit that stores the sensing data in the sensing unit, and is physically It is composed of a sensor that can operate independently without a mechanical wiring.

  The control unit responds to the clock operation of the clock unit, causes the sensing unit to perform sensing at a predetermined sampling frequency, stores the sensing data in the storage unit, and is a synchronization signal input / output from the external input / output terminal In response to this, the time of the clock unit is adjusted. This time adjustment may be performed by inputting a synchronization signal from a base unit provided outside to the control unit from the external input terminal, or by connecting another sensor and from the external output terminal of one sensor. It may be performed between the sensors by outputting a synchronization signal to the external input terminal of the other sensor. The sampling frequency in the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors is an integral multiple of the sampling frequency in one of the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors. This ensures synchronization between the sensing data of each sensor required for diagnosis.

  Therefore, it is possible to perform accurate diagnosis by using a sensor that can operate independently without physical wiring having good wearability, and ensuring synchronization between sensing data of each sensor.

  Further, in the above sleep apnea test apparatus according to the present invention, the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors include an oronasal flow sensor, a snoring sound sensor, a blood oxygen concentration sensor, a chest motion sensor, and an abdominal motion sensor. It consists of a combination of at least two or more.

  According to the above configuration, since the mouth-nose flow sensor and the snoring sound sensor are mounted near the face, it is possible to obtain a good wearing feeling without a long wiring, and the chest motion sensor and the abdominal motion sensor are Even when the posture is changed, it is difficult to peel off the body due to the absence of the wiring, and the effect of eliminating the wiring is great.

  Furthermore, the above-mentioned sleep apnea test apparatus according to the present invention collects a set of the sleep apnea test sensors and a sensing section of each sensor in the stored state. And a master unit that outputs the synchronization signal.

  According to the above configuration, the sensing data of each sensor can be collected only by connecting the sensing data analysis means such as a personal computer to the parent device, and the sensors are collectively stored in the parent device. Thus, the time can be adjusted and convenience (operability) can be improved.

  In the sleep apnea test apparatus of the present invention, as described above, each sleep apnea test sensor that is used simultaneously for the diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome, the sensing unit has its sensing data. And a sensor that can operate independently without physical wiring. The control unit responds to the clock operation of the clock unit, causes the sensing unit to perform sensing at a predetermined sampling frequency, stores the sensing data in the storage unit, and is a synchronization signal input / output from the external input / output terminal The sampling frequency in the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors is one of the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors. Is an integer multiple of the sampling frequency. This ensures synchronization between the sensing data of each sensor that is necessary for diagnosis.

  Therefore, it is possible to perform accurate diagnosis by using a sensor that can operate independently without physical wiring having good wearability and ensuring synchronization between sensing data of each sensor.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a sleep apnea test apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The sleep apnea test apparatus 1 includes a plurality of sensors S1 to S6 that are used at the same time and a recording device S10 and a parent device S0. In the medical institution, a totaling device P such as a personal computer is connected to the parent device S0, and a doctor diagnoses a SAS symptom from data totaled in the totaling device P as described later.

  In the example of FIG. 1, the sensors are a temperature sensor S1 that measures nasal respiration, a temperature sensor S2 that measures mouth respiration, a small acoustic sensor S3 that measures snoring sound, an optical sensor S4 that measures blood oxygen concentration, Although six sensors of the acceleration sensor S5 for measuring chest movement and the acceleration sensor S6 for measuring abdominal movement are shown, at least two of them are used in combination. The sensors S1 to S3 are configured only by a sensing portion, and are connected to a recording device S10 that incorporates a battery and a data storage unit to configure the sensors in the claims. These sensors S1 ˜S3 and the recording device S10 can be used independently without any external physical wiring. On the other hand, the sensors S4 to S6 each have a built-in battery and data storage unit, and there is no physical wiring for them, and they can be used alone.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a mounting state of the temperature sensor S1 that measures nasal respiration, the temperature sensor S2 that measures mouth respiration, and the small acoustic sensor S3 that measures snoring sound. A temperature sensor S1 that measures nasal respiration and a temperature sensor S2 that measures mouth respiration are affixed to a portion 12 under the nose of the patient 10, and measures respiration from temperature changes due to the passage of exhalation. These temperature sensors S1, S2 are connected to the recording device S10 via a common wiring L1. The small acoustic sensor S3 for measuring the snoring sound is composed of a small microphone, is attached to the throat portion 13 of the patient 10, and is connected to the recording device S10 via the wiring L3.

  The recording device S10 is attached to the ear portion 11 of the patient 10 as shown in FIG. 2A, or stored in the pocket 22 of the garment 21 as shown in FIG. It is affixed to the shoulder of clothing.

  Since these sensors S <b> 1 to S <b> 3 are mounted near the face of the patient 10, a good mounting feeling can be obtained because there is no long wiring. Here, the wirings L1 and L3 exist, but the temperature sensors S1 and S2 are particularly exposed to the exhalation of the patient 10, so that the sensing parts are integrated and pasted to obstruct breathing or increase in size. It does not peel off due to moisture, and even if a short-distance wiring L1 exists, it is more advantageous than providing a storage unit on the temperature sensors S1 and S2 side. Correspondingly, the temperature sensor S1, S2 and the small acoustic sensor S3 arranged at a relatively short distance also have a large sampling frequency and number of bits in order to collect sound, and a battery and a storage unit are connected to the microphone. When integrated, the size increases, so that the recording device S10 is connected to the recording device S10 via a short-distance wiring L3, and the recording device S10 is shared. In this way, the sensors S1 to S3 are connected to the recording device S10 by wire, but the sensors S1 to S3 are grouped in units that are close to each other so as not to be affected by body movement during sleep.

  On the other hand, FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a wearing state of the optical sensor S4 for measuring the blood oxygen concentration. As shown in FIG. 3A, the optical sensor S4 is attached to the distal end portion of the index finger 14 of the patient 10, transmits red and infrared light into the distal end portion, and flows hemoglobin and oxyhemoglobin. The blood oxygen concentration is measured from the difference in absorbance. In this way, it is effective to eliminate the wiring of the optical sensor S4 that is attached to the hand that moves rapidly.

  As described above, the optical sensor S4 is attached to the fingertip of the patient 10 and is easily detached during sleep. Therefore, as shown in FIG. A recording device S40 to be mounted on the wrist 23 of the patient 10 may be provided and connected between them by a wiring L4.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically showing the wearing state of the acceleration sensor S5 that measures chest movement and the acceleration sensor S6 that measures abdominal movement. The acceleration sensor S5 that measures chest movement is attached to the vicinity of the groovy 15 of the patient 10, and the acceleration sensor S6 that measures abdominal movement is attached to the vicinity of the navel 16. By eliminating the wiring of these acceleration sensors S5 and S6, it is difficult to peel off from the body even with respect to a change in posture, which is effective.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the recording device S10 and the sensors S1 to S6 are accommodated in the accommodating portion S0a of the master unit S0, and the respective sensors are placed on the operation panel S0b side by operation from the operation panel S0b in the accommodated state. Sensing data of S1 to S6 is collected, and the collected sensing data is collectively transferred from the operation panel S0b to the aggregation device P by an operation from the operation panel S0b or an operation from the aggregation device P.

  In the sleep apnea test apparatus 1 configured as described above, the sensors S1 to S6 and the recording device S10 are housed in the parent device S0 and connected to the operation panel S0b before use. The parent device S0 is connected to the counting device P, and an operation from the user is performed through software on the counting device P.

  In response to a user operation, when the time set command is transmitted from the totaling device P to the parent device S0, the parent device S0 composed of a microcomputer or the like receives the time set command at the communication port and is connected to the parallel port. The same time is set in the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 which are the slave units. The parallel port here does not need to be a so-called printer port, but may be a plurality of general-purpose data ports that can be controlled simultaneously or managed.

  The set time does not need to be an absolutely accurate time, and the same time may be set in the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 even if there is a deviation from the absolutely accurate time. Further, it is not necessary to provide time data, but a simple trigger may be given, and each slave unit may determine the time origin in accordance with the trigger.

  As a specific method of such a time set, in response to a time set command from the totaling device P, all the recording devices S10 and sensors S4 to S6 connected to the parent device S0 simultaneously have the same time 0. May be set (by the trigger). Alternatively, every time the recording device S10 or each of the sensors S4 to S6 is connected, the current time managed by the parent device S0 may be set. In this case, all the recording devices S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 are set. Need not be connected at the same time. For example, at a certain point in time, only the recording device S10 is connected, and the parent device S0 sets the time A in the recording device S10. At another time after that, the optical sensor S4 is connected, and the parent device S0 sets the time B to the optical sensor S4. Since the parent device S0 manages the time, even if different times of time A and time B are set in the recording device S10 and the sensor S4, the time difference between the sensors S1 to S3 and the optical sensor S4 is It can be managed from the machine S0. Even if the number of sensors increases, it can be set similarly.

  In this way, the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6, which have once been set in time, perform time management by using their own time management clocks. Therefore, even if each recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 are used without using a communication means such as physical wiring or wireless communication, the synchronization between the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 is synchronized with the respective clocks. Secured within the range of variation.

  Therefore, the larger the battery capacity and the faster the clock, the smaller the clock variation and the less time lag and the less frequent the time setting. It is desirable to set the clock frequency to the limit and set the time every use.

  In use, the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 respond to the clocking operation of the clock unit, cause the sensing unit to perform sensing at a predetermined sampling frequency, and store the sensing data in the storage unit. The sampling frequency is an integer multiple of the sampling frequency in the recording device S10 and one of the sensors S4 to S6. The data sampling frequencies of the sensors S1 to S6 may not be equal to each other. For example, the minimum sampling frequency of the temperature sensors S1 and S2 is 2 Hz, the sampling frequency of the small acoustic sensor S3 is 1 kHz, the sampling frequency of the optical sensor S4 is 10 Hz, and the sampling frequency of the acceleration sensors S5 and S6 is 50 Hz. The sampling frequency of the sensors S3 to S6 other than the temperature sensors S1 and S2 is an integral multiple of the sampling frequency of the temperature sensors S1 and S2. In this case, when all the sensors S1 to S6 are synchronized simultaneously through the parent device S0, the data of the remaining sensors S3 to S6 are also sampled at the time of data sampling of the temperature sensors S1 and S2.

  After use, each of the sensors S1 to S6 and the recording device S10 is housed in the parent device S0, and the data recording command is transmitted from the totaling device P by sequentially specifying the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 as slave devices. As a result, the master device S0 transfers the data transfer command to the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6, and in response to this, the recording device S10 and the sensors S4 to S6 transmit the sensing data held therein to the time. The data is transmitted to the parent device S0 together with the data, and transferred to the counting device P.

  By configuring in this way, using the sensors S1 to S6 that can operate independently without physical wiring with good wearability, synchronization between the sensing data of each sensor S1 to S6 is ensured. Accurate diagnosis can be made. In addition, by making the totaling device P composed of personal computers as a master, the resources as a storage device such as the memory of the slave device (recording device S10 and sensors S4 to S6) and the master device S0 can be kept to a minimum, and the device is manufactured. It is possible to reduce the cost of parts required for this.

  In the above description, the case where the time management is performed by the parent device S0 has been described. Alternatively, synchronization may be obtained by transmitting a time managed by the master to one of the sensors as a master for time management and the other sensors as slaves.

  6 and 7 are graphs showing the experiment results of the present inventor using the sleep apnea test apparatus 1 realized by the above configuration. FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 are data examples measured on different days for the same subject. The measurement time zone of the illustrated data is one minute from night 2:59 am to 3:00 am. A vertical line extending between the graphs is an auxiliary line inserted for analysis for examining the synchronization of the measurement data.

  In the abdominal movement shown in FIG. 6, the upper part of the vertical axis indicates the direction in which the abdomen swells, that is, the degree of inhalation, and the lower part of the vertical axis indicates the direction in which the abdomen defers, that is, the degree of nausea. The vertical auxiliary line is inserted in the peak value of inspiration based on the abdominal movement. The acceleration sensors S5 and S6 used for measuring the abdominal and chest movements can measure three-axis acceleration components of x, y, and z, and the wearing direction on the body is x from the head to the foot. The right to left direction is y, and the back to belly direction is z.

  From the time transition from the auxiliary line, it is understood that the snoring sound is generated immediately after the abdominal movement shows the peak value of the inspiration. In the graph of mouth breathing and nasal breathing, the upper part of the vertical axis indicates the degree of nausea (temperature rise due to), and the lower part indicates the degree of inspiration (temperature drop due to). As indicated by the auxiliary line, it is understood that the inhalation of the nasal breath is performed almost in synchronization with the inhalation timing of the abdominal movement. It can also be recognized that although mouth breathing is small compared to nasal breathing, it is almost synchronized with snoring. From these data, it can be seen that although snoring occurs after inspiration, breathing as ventilation is performed normally.

  In FIG. 7, it is understood that the inspiratory peak of mouth breathing appears slightly behind the inspiratory peak of nasal breathing. From this, mouth breathing is also performed to some extent, and it is estimated that the mouth and the larynx tend to dry. The chest movement data in FIG. 7 is data when the posture is changed sideways, and shows a waveform that is quite different from the abdominal movement shown in FIG. It is recognized that each component of x, y, and z shown by the chest motion in FIG. 7 changes periodically according to respiration although the direction of change is different.

  As described above, even in actual apnea diagnosis, the data obtained from the sensors S1 to S6 is comprehensively analyzed to calculate the frequency of occurrence of apnea for 10 seconds or more. The correlation is very important, and it is necessary to reduce the burden of mounting the sensors S1 to S6 and the recording device 10 on the patient so as not to disturb sleep and to have a device configuration that can obtain accurate data. It is important to say that the present invention is effective.

It is a block diagram which shows schematic structure of the sleep apnea test | inspection apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows typically the mounting condition of the temperature sensor which measures nasal respiration, the temperature sensor which measures mouth respiration, and the small acoustic sensor which measures snoring sound. It is a figure which shows typically the mounting condition of the optical sensor which measures blood oxygen concentration. It is a figure which shows typically the mounting condition of the acceleration sensor which measures a chest movement, and the acceleration sensor which measures abdominal movement. It is a perspective view which shows the main | base station which accommodates a recording device and each sensor. It is a graph which shows the experimental result of this inventor. It is a graph which shows the experimental result of this inventor.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Sleep apnea test | inspection apparatus 10 Patient 11 Ear part 12 Part under the nose 13 Throat part 14 Index finger 15 Groove 16 Umbilical 21 Clothes 22 Pocket 23 Wrist L1 Common wiring L3, L4 Wiring P Aggregation device S0 Master unit S0a Storage Part S0b operation panel S1 temperature sensor S2 measuring nasal respiration volume temperature sensor S3 measuring mouth respiration volume small acoustic sensor S4 measuring snoring sound optical sensor S5 measuring blood oxygen concentration acceleration sensor S6 measuring chest movement Acceleration sensors S10 and S40 for measuring abdominal movement Recording device

Claims (3)

In a sleep apnea test apparatus comprising a plurality of sleep apnea test sensors used simultaneously for the diagnosis of sleep apnea syndrome,
Each of the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors,
A sensing unit;
A clock part,
A storage unit for storing sensing data of the sensing unit;
In response to the clocking operation of the clock unit, the sensing unit performs sensing at a predetermined sampling frequency, and the sensing data is stored in the storage unit, and the synchronization signal input / output from the external input / output terminal In response, including a control unit for adjusting the time of the clock unit,
The sampling frequency in the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors is an integer multiple of the sampling frequency in one of the plurality of sleep apnea test sensors. Sleep apnea test device. The plurality of sleep apnea test sensors include a combination of at least two of a mouth-nose flow sensor, a snoring sound sensor, a blood oxygen concentration sensor, a chest motion sensor, and an abdominal motion sensor. The sleep apnea test apparatus according to Item 1. A storage section capable of storing a set of sensors for sleep apnea testing;
The sleep apnea test apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a master unit that collects sensing data of each sensor in a stored state and outputs the synchronization signal.

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