The present invention relates to a device and system for tracking medical events, more particularly for tracking both time elapsed since a medication dosage was administered and time elapsed since one or more symptoms were noted by the patient.
Chronic illnesses may require regular medical treatments, as well as close monitoring of the condition. For example, a hemophiliac may require one or more medications to be administered on a regular basis, such as every several hours, once per day, once per week, etc. It would be impractical and expensive for the patient to schedule visits with a health care professional for each medication administration. Accordingly, patients typically self-administer these regimented medications. Adherence to the medication schedule is typically an important aspect of treatment.
Further, some medications are volatile. To help provide medications with an increased shelf life, they are provided to the patient or caregiver in a deactivated state. Prior to administration, the medication is activated. If the activation is performed incorrectly, the medication may be less effective than intended. Accordingly, patients are conventionally encouraged to correctly follow activation procedures for any prescribed medications. Suitable medicinal reconstitution devices for such application are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,734,420 and 8,545,476, both of which are incorporated by reference.
Moreover, treatment for some chronic diseases may be based on the presence or absence of particular symptoms. For example, a medication dosage for a hemophiliac patient may be increased if the patient's annual bleed rate exceeds a certain threshold. Moreover, such symptom tracking may help the patient and/or practitioner identify conditions which trigger the symptoms. Such information may prove valuable in further defining treatments for the patient.
Thus, there is a need to encourage patients to adhere to administration instructions for medications, including both scheduling and activation of the treatment. Additionally, there is a need to encourage patients to more accurately track their symptoms.