| abstract |
Method and apparatus for determining hemodynamic characteristics from measurements of blood pressure (18, 160 and 165) carried out without penetration into a human body, simultaneously with the measurement of a characteristic value (15, 101, 100, 105), such as impedance, body section, and processing signals (20, 120) representing the characteristic value of blood pressure measurements through an electronic device (120, 130, 140) to obtain a electrical signal representing the hemodynamic characteristic. In the embodiment given by way of example, means (40, 70, 175) are provided for displaying the hemodynamic characteristic, such as means for video display, graphics, trace, or printer output. . In the exemplary embodiment, a plurality of measurements without penetration are taken over a period of time, and the hemodynamic characteristic is determined and displayed in response to the plurality of measurements. The hemodynamic characteristics which can be determined from the teachings of the present invention include cardiac output over a period of time, the modulus of elasticity of the arterial walls of the section of the body on which the measurement is made, blood flow, cardiac output, contractility, useful power of the heart, systemic vascular resistance, cardiac index, systolic volume, section of blood vessels in section of the body, etc. The determination can be made in absolute terms, in relative terms, in terms of deviation from the mean, or in terms of a range of values. The determined value can be displayed in the form of a diagram, graph, curve, table or other forms. |