DESC:Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of perioperative healthcare technology and surgical monitoring systems, more specifically to a smart medical-surgical device designed for real-time estimation and monitoring of intraoperative fluid and blood loss. This invention integrates sensor-based hardware, artificial intelligence (AI), and clinical informatics to enhance decision-making during surgeries, particularly in the domains of anesthesiology, surgical nursing, and perioperative patient safety.
Background of the Invention
In surgical and perioperative settings, accurate monitoring of blood and fluid loss is critical for guiding timely clinical decisions, such as blood transfusions and fluid replacement. Traditionally, intraoperative blood loss is estimated by visual inspection of soaked surgical sponges, manual weighing, and measuring fluids in suction canisters. These methods are highly subjective, labor-intensive, and prone to inconsistent interpretation among different members of the surgical team.
Despite the availability of advanced surgical technologies, most operating rooms—especially in low-resource settings—continue to rely on manual or semi-quantitative techniques, which may lead to underestimation or overestimation of actual blood loss. This inaccuracy increases the risk of intraoperative hypovolemia, fluid overload, inappropriate transfusion, and adverse maternal or surgical outcomes. Moreover, the lack of real-time data poses a barrier to early intervention and delays in activating emergency response protocols, such as the massive transfusion protocol (MTP).
While some attempts have been made to develop digital suction devices and optical sensors, these are often cost-prohibitive, not integrated with electronic health records, and lack comprehensive sponge-based tracking or AI-powered analysis for improved accuracy.
Therefore, there is an urgent need for a smart, integrated, and cost-effective solution that can provide real-time, automated, and accurate estimation of blood and fluid loss during surgeries to support evidence-based perioperative care.
Object of the Invention
The main objective of the present invention is to provide a smart, integrated, and automated system for real-time estimation and monitoring of intraoperative blood and fluid loss to improve surgical safety and clinical decision-making.
Specific objectives include:
1. To develop a sensor-embedded surgical monitoring system capable of accurately detecting and quantifying absorbed blood in sponges and collected fluid in suction canisters.
2. To utilize artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to differentiate between blood, saline, and other body fluids in real time.
3. To design a user-friendly interface (touchscreen or mobile-based) that displays fluid loss data continuously for use by surgeons, anesthetists, and perioperative nurses.
4. To enable wireless integration with hospital electronic health record (EHR) systems for automated documentation and auditing.
5. To facilitate early activation of transfusion protocols by setting customized alert thresholds for blood loss.
6. To provide a portable and cost-effective solution, adaptable for use in both high-resource surgical theatres and rural or emergency settings.
Summary of the Invention
The present invention provides a smart perioperative fluid and blood loss monitoring system (SPFBMS) that integrates sensor technology, AI-driven analysis, and digital interfacing to enable accurate, real-time estimation of blood and fluid loss during surgical procedures.
The system comprises:
• Sensor-embedded surgical sponges and drapes that detect and quantify absorbed blood through hemoglobin-sensitive optical or capacitive sensors.
• Smart suction canisters integrated with load cells and colorimetric sensors to measure total aspirated fluid volume and estimate blood content.
• A central processing unit equipped with AI algorithms that differentiate between blood, saline, and other fluids, ensuring precise volume and content calculations.
• A touchscreen and/or mobile application interface that provides real-time visualization of estimated blood loss, alerts for critical thresholds, and decision-support prompts.
• Wireless connectivity to hospital electronic health records (EHR) systems, allowing automatic documentation and audit readiness.
By replacing manual, error-prone estimation methods, this invention enhances perioperative safety, supports evidence-based transfusion and fluid replacement decisions, and improves nursing workflow efficiency. It is especially beneficial in complex or high-risk surgeries and adaptable to both tertiary care centers and resource-constrained surgical environments.
,CLAIMS:Independent Claims
Claim 1
A smart perioperative fluid and blood loss monitoring system comprising:
• at least one sensor-embedded absorbent surgical sponge,
• a smart suction canister equipped with fluid level and colorimetric sensors,
• a central processing unit configured to receive input from the sponge and suction canister sensors,
• and a display interface operatively connected to the central processing unit,
wherein the system is configured to estimate, calculate, and display real-time blood and fluid loss during surgical procedures.
Claim 2
The system of Claim 1, wherein the central processing unit comprises an AI-based algorithm capable of differentiating blood from other bodily fluids or irrigation solutions using data received from the sensors.
Claim 3
A method of monitoring intraoperative blood loss in real time, the method comprising:
• detecting blood absorption in surgical sponges via optical hemoglobin sensors,
• measuring aspirated fluids in a suction canister using load cells and colorimetric analysis,
• processing data using a central unit configured with AI, and
• providing output to a display or mobile interface,
wherein alerts are generated based on predefined thresholds of estimated blood loss.
Dependent Claims
Claim 4
The system of Claim 1, wherein the surgical sponges further comprise RFID tags for automatic sponge count tracking and loss estimation.
Claim 5
The system of Claim 1, wherein the smart suction canister includes a digital volumetric display and hemoglobin concentration analysis module.
Claim 6
The system of Claim 2, wherein the AI-based algorithm is further configured to recommend transfusion volume based on blood loss and patient parameters.
Claim 7
The system of Claim 1, wherein the display interface comprises a touchscreen module and supports wireless data transmission to electronic health records (EHR) systems.
Claim 8
The method of Claim 3, wherein the alerts generated are visual and auditory and include real-time transfusion guidance.
Claim 9
The system of Claim 1, wherein the device is portable and battery-operated, allowing usage in resource-limited, field, or emergency settings.