Invention Summary:
Measures to assess cardiovascular health range from simple tests such as blood pressure, resting heart rate, or stress test to ones that are highly invasive such as pulmonary catheterization. In patients at risk for peripheral artery disease, such as diabetics, there are other measures including reactive hyperemia tests and pulse wave velocity. While adequate for assessing overt cardiac or peripheral artery disease, these measures do not provide a complete view of the patients’ cardiovascular health. A more complete view can be provided by looking at a combination of cardiac and vascular measures that assess the blood flow to working tissue. This combination of measures reflects the heart’s ability to pump blood and the healthiness of blood vessels. Currently these measures are not considered together, are not used diagnostically, and are not used to help individuals by recommending appropriate lifestyle or pharmacologic changes.
Rutgers researcher has developed the Improved Cardiovascular Evaluation (ICE) algorithm that considers both central and vascular blood flow to working tissue by combining central and peripheral measures of cardiovascular function. The ICE algorithm can assess the physiological level where an individual is limited in blood flow delivery to the muscles/organs. Based on the assessment, the algorithm can recommend both lifestyle and pharmacological approaches to improve blood flow delivery. For individuals who are not responsive to these approaches the algorithm is able to demonstrate the cause (of such "non-responsiveness") and can help to target more effective regimens. The algorithm can be used to make predictions, learn from accumulated data, and be adapted for use with patients with health related problems (e.g., cardiovascular), providing targeted exercise and lifestyle regimens, as well as for athletes to optimize their abilities with specific training and dietary support.
Advantages:
- More accurate diagnosis of patients with cardiovascular diseases
- Enables creation of personalized treatment and training plans.
- Maximizes performance and faster recovery for athletes.
- Low cost does not require expensive equipment and is non-invasive.
Market Applications:
- Digital Health Software/Solutions
- Medical Devices
- Personalized Medicine
- Sports Medicine
Intellectual Property & Development Status: Patent pending. Available for licensing, further development, industry partnering or distribution.