US Patent 7617137 Surgical suite radio frequency identification methods and systems

Methods, systems, and products are disclosed for tracking surgical items. A sensor reads RFID tags and confirms the type of surgical procedure to be performed on a patient's body. An allowable zone is determined in the patient's body that corresponds to the type of surgical procedure to be performed. When movement of a surgical item is detected outside the allowable zone in the patient's body, then an alarm is triggered to indicate the surgical item is moving towards a zone in the patient's body in which the surgical item may not be used.