Implantable Doppler Tomography System

Abstract

The inventive implantable Doppler tomography system allows, for the first time, the use of Doppler shift for purposes of tracking cardiac wall motion. The present inventive Doppler tomography system methods and devices provide a critical new tool in the physician's armamentarium which provides accurate, real time monitoring of the mechanical performance of the heart.

1 . A method for describing movement of a tissue location in a subject, said method comprising:
 (a) transmitting electromagnetic energy from a transmitter; and   (b) detecting said transmitted electromagnetic radiation at a sensor located at said tissue location; and   (c) using a determined Doppler shift in said electromagnetic radiation at said sensor to describe movement of said tissue location.   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein said electromagnetic energy is an RF field. 
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein said transmitter and sensor are electrodes. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein said transmitter transmits said electromagnetic energy in a pulse mode. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein said tissue location is a cardiac location. 
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 5 , wherein said cardiac location is a heart wall location. 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 6 , wherein said heart wall is a chamber wall. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 7 , wherein said chamber wall is a ventricular wall. 
     
     
         9 . The method according to  claim 8 , wherein said chamber wall is a septal wall. 
     
     
         10 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein said method is a method of determining timing of cardiac wall motion. 
     
     
         11 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein said method is a method of determining cardiac wall motion of a first cardiac wall relative to a second cardiac wall. 
     
     
         12 . The method according to  claim 11 , wherein said method is a method of determining timing of cardiac wall motion of a first cardiac wall relative to a second cardiac wall. 
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 12 , wherein said method is a method of detecting ventricular mechanical dyssynchrony. 
     
     
         14 . The method according to  claim 13 , wherein said ventricular mechanical dyssynchrony is interventricular. 
     
     
         15 . The method according to  claim 13 , wherein said ventricular mechanical dyssynchrony is intraventricular. 
     
     
         16 . The method according to  claim 13 , wherein said method further comprises performing cardiac resynchronization therapy based on said detected dyssynchrony. 
     
     
         17 . A system for describing movement of a tissue location, said system comprising:
 (a) an electromagnetic energy transmitter;   (b) a sensing element; and   (c) a signal processing element configured to employ a detected Doppler shift in said sensing element to describe movement of tissue location.   
     
     
         18 . The system according to  claim 17 , wherein said system is an implantable device. 
     
     
         19 . The system according to  claim 18 , wherein said implantable device further comprises a cardiac electrical stimulation element. 
     
     
         20 . The system according to  claim 19 , wherein said implantable device is a cardiac resynchronization therapy device. 
     
     
         21 . A computer readable storage medium having a processing program stored thereon, wherein said processing program operates a processor to operate a system according to  claim 17  to perform a method according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         22 . A processor comprising a computer readable medium according to  claim 21 . 
     
     
         23 . A kit comprising:
 a computer readable storage medium according to  claim 21 .