The interpretation of time-varying data with DIAMON-1.

Applying the methods of Artificial Intelligence to clinical monitoring requires some kind of signal-to-symbol conversion as a prior step. Subsequent processing of the derived symbolic information must also be sensitive to history and development, as the failure to address temporal relationships between findings invariably leads to inferior results. DIAMON-1, a framework for the design of diagnostic monitors, provides two methods for the interpretation of time-varying data: one for the detection of trends based on classes of courses, and one for the tracking of disease histories modelled through deterministic automata. Both methods make use of fuzzy set theory taking account of the elasticity of medical categories and allowing discrete disease models to mirror the patient's continuous progression through the stages of illness.