Abstract: An implantable drug infusion pump for delivering drug therapy is made more reliable and its performance improved by monitoring drug pump temperature. Monitoring pump temperature can also provide for temperature-related drug therapy modification. A pump temperature sensor is read by the infusion pump's microprocessor. Pump temperature data is stored in pump memory for later access by a remote controller. A simple thermistor or semiconductor temperature sensor can provide fast and reliable temperature monitoring of the pump and/or of a patient by reading the temperature sensor's value and calculating a temperature therefrom.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for automatically adjusting drug infusion rate to optimize treatment therapy. The implantable medical device can communicate with a database or algorithm controlled by a caregiver or physician. Thus, the caregiver may request a therapy change (e.g., infusion rate versus time, pump clock settings, etc.) or a therapy management module may automatically activate the therapy change at some future time for convenience, or for technical or clinical reasons.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for determining whether an implantable drug delivery device is conforming to the performance requirements of the device or the needs of the patient. The system includes an implantable drug delivery device having stored therein at least one drug, a nonconformance monitor module monitoring pump parameters, an external programmer in telemetric communication with the implantable drug delivery device and having a nonconformance management module for determining whether the device is conforming to performance requirements, and to determine what action should be taken if non-conformance is determined. If the nonconformance management module identifies nonconformance, it determines what action should be taken for the particular non-conformance. The nonconformance management module will either invoke a pump programming change, or schedule and appointment or notify the patient that a non-programming change should be made.

Abstract: An implantable drug infusion pump for delivering drug therapy to a patient and which also permits a patient to deliver or self-administer an additional bolus, reduces the likelihood of over dosage or under dosage by drug dosage characteristic limitations programmed into a microprocessor memory. The dose limits define the maximum and minimum amount of drug to be delivered per unit time or otherwise, reducing the likelihood that a patient may inadvertently or deliberately interfere with a treatment regimen.

Abstract: The invention provides implantable infusion systems, including apparatus and methods, for prolonged infusion of a carefully designed medicament composition to create and maintain a comprehensive microenvironment at a target area in a living body. The composition may include living cells to treat a particular disease and which deliver exogenous substances to maintain a microenvironment in the living body. The invention contemplates medicament compositions that include stem cells (neuro or otherwise), including homographs and allographs, adhesive peptides, substances which inhibit fiberblast growth, genetically modified cells which produce useful exogenous substances, nerve growth factor (NGF), previously harvested cells from a living body. In another aspect, the invention contemplates the replication of cells in a reservoir, for example, to keep cells alive in a dormant state until infusion.

Abstract: The invention provides implantable infusion systems, including apparatus and methods, for prolonged infusion of a carefully designed medicament composition to create and maintain a comprehensive microenvironment at a target area in a living body. The composition may include living cells to treat a particular disease and which deliver exogenous substances to maintain a microenvironment in the living body. The invention contemplates medicament compositions that include stem cells (neuro or otherwise), including homographs and allographs, adhesive peptides, substances which inhibit fiberblast growth, genetically modified cells which produce useful exogenous substances, nerve growth factor (NGF), previously harvested cells from a living body. In another aspect, the invention contemplates the replication of cells in a reservoir, for example, to keep cells alive in a dormant state until infusion.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for automatically adjusting drug infusion rate to optimize treatment therapy. The implantable medical device can communicate with a database or algorithm controlled by a caregiver or physician. Thus, the caregiver may request a therapy change (e.g., infusion rate versus time, pump clock settings, etc.) or a therapy management module may automatically activate the therapy change at some future time for convenience, or for technical or clinical reasons.