Cranial nerve stimulation for treatment of substance addiction

• US 20060200208A1
• Filed: 04/29/2005
• Published: 09/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 03/04/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jacob Zabara
• Original Assignee: Cyberonics, Inc
• Inventors: Terry, Reese S. Jr., Zabara, Jacob
• Granted Patent: US 8,700,163 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/58
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36014 External stimulators, e.g. with patch electrodes external pacemakers A61N1/3625
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36053 adapted for vagal stimulation A61N1/36114 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36089 Addiction or withdrawal from substance abuse such as alcohol or drugs

Abstract

A method of treating a patient with at least one substance addiction, which comprises directly stimulating a cranial nerve, such as the vagus nerve, of a patient with an electrical pulse signal defined by a plurality of parameters to provide a therapy regimen for alleviating a symptom associated with the substance addiction.

Claims

1. A method of treating a patient having a substance addiction, comprising:

directly coupling an electrode to a cranial nerve of the patient, and

applying an electrical signal to said cranial nerve using said electrode to alleviate a symptom of the substance addiction.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the substance addiction is selected from the group consisting of cocaine addiction, alcohol addiction, and opioid addiction.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein said cranial nerve is selected from the group consisting of a vagus nerve, a trigeminal nerve and a glossopharyngeal nerve.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the symptom that is alleviated by the electrical signal is selected from the group consisting of craving the substance to which the patient is addicted and a withdrawal symptom associated with the substance addiction.

4. The method of claim 4 wherein said cranial nerve is a vagus nerve.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step of providing a programmable electrical pulse generator coupled to said electrode, and wherein said step of applying an electrical signal to said vagus nerve comprises generating a pulsed electrical signal with said pulse generator and applying said pulsed electrical signal to said electrode.

6. The method of claim 5 further comprising programming said electrical pulse generator to define said pulsed electrical signal by a plurality of parameters including a current magnitude, a pulse frequency, and a pulse width, wherein said parameters are selected to alleviate said symptom of the substance addiction.

8. A method of treating a patient having a substance addiction, comprising:

contacting an electrode to a vagus nerve of the patient, and

applying an electrical signal to said electrode; and

generating afferent action potentials on said vagus nerve to alleviate a symptom of the substance addiction.

9. The method of claim 8 further comprising the step of providing a programmable electrical pulse generator, and wherein said step of applying an electrical signal to said vagus nerve comprises applying a pulsed electrical signal from the pulse generator to said vagus nerve.

10. The method of claim 9 further comprising programming said electrical pulse generator to define said pulsed electrical signal by a plurality of parameters including a current magnitude, a pulse frequency, and a pulse width, wherein said parameters are selected to alleviate said symptom of the substance addiction.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the symptom is craving for the substance to which the patient is addicted.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the symptom is a withdrawal symptom selected from the group consisting of nausea, vomiting, fever, dizziness, and profuse sweating.

13. The method of claim 8 further comprising the step of detecting a symptom characteristic of the substance addiction, wherein said step of applying an electrical signal to said vagus nerve is initiated in response to the detection of said symptom.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein the detection is made with an implanted sensor.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the detection is made by the patient subjectively recognizing the symptom.

16. The method of claim 8 wherein the substance addiction is selected from the group consisting of cocaine addiction, alcoholism, addiction to opioids, sedative, hypnotic or anxiolytic-related disorders, hallucinogen related disorders, cannabis related disorders, amphetamine related disorders, nicotine related disorders, inhalant related disorders, phencyclidine related disorders, and polysubstance abuse disorders.

17. A method of treating a patient having a substance addiction, comprising:

directly coupling an electrode to a cranial nerve of the patient;

applying a first electrical signal to said cranial nerve in a first treatment period to alleviate a symptom of the substance addiction;

applying a second electrical signal different from said first electrical signal in a second treatment period.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein said first treatment period is an acute treatment period and said second treatment period is a chronic treatment period.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein said first treatment period comprises from one week to six months.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein said second treatment period comprises from one month to the remainder of the patient'"'"'s life.

21. The method of claim 17 wherein the first electrical signal alleviates a symptom of the substance addiction selected from the group consisting of cravings for the substance and a withdrawal symptom of the substance addiction.

22. The method of claim 17 wherein the first electrical signal may be initiated by the patient upon perceiving a need for treatment of the substance addiction.

23. The method of claim 17 wherein said cranial nerve is selected from the group consisting of a vagus nerve, a trigeminal nerve, and a glossopharyngeal nerve.

24. The method of claim 17 further comprising the steps of providing a programmable electrical pulse generator, and wherein said steps of applying a first and a second electrical signal each comprise applying a pulsed electrical signal from the pulse generator.

25. The method of claim 24 further comprising the step of programming said electrical pulse generator to define said first and second pulsed electrical signals by a plurality of parameters including a current magnitude, a pulse frequency, and a pulse width.

26. The method of claim 17 further comprising the step of detecting a symptom characteristic of the substance addiction, wherein said step of applying said first electrical signal is initiated in response to the detection of said symptom.

27. The method of claim 17 wherein the substance addiction is selected from the group consisting of cocaine addiction, alcoholism, addiction to opioids, sedative, hypnotic or anxiolytic-related disorders, hallucinogen related disorders, cannabis related disorders, amphetamine related disorders, nicotine related disorders, inhalant related disorders, phencyclidine related disorders, and polysubstance abuse disorders.

28. A method of treating a patient having a substance addiction, comprising:

providing a pulse generator capable of generating a pulsed electrical signal;

providing an electrode;

implanting the pulse generator in the patient'"'"'s body;

surgically coupling said electrode directly to a vagus nerve of the patient;

coupling the pulse generator to the electrode;

generating a pulsed electrical signal using said pulse generator

applying said pulsed electrical signal to said vagus nerve using said electrode to alleviate a symptom of the substance addiction.

29. The method of claim 28 further comprising the steps of:

providing an external programmer capable of programming said pulse generator; and

programming said electrical pulse generator to define said pulsed electrical signal by a plurality of parameters including a current magnitude, a pulse frequency, and a pulse width, wherein said parameters are selected to alleviate said symptom of the substance addiction.

30. The method of claim 28 further comprising the step of:

providing a lead, wherein said lead comprises a proximal end and a distal end, and wherein said lead is directly coupled to said electrode at said distal end; and

directly coupling said proximal end of said lead to said pulse generator.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein surgically coupling said electrode directly to a vagus nerve of the patient comprises attaching the electrode to a vagus nerve in the patient'"'"'s neck area.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein surgically coupling said electrode directly to a vagus nerve of the patient comprises attaching the electrode to a vagus nerve in the diaphragm area.

33. The method of claim 28, wherein applying said pulsed electrical signal to said vagus nerve comprises applying said signal to both the left and the right branches of the vagus nerve.

34. The method of claim 28, wherein applying said pulsed electrical signal to said vagus nerve comprises applying said signal to the left branch of the vagus nerve.

35. The method of claim 28 further comprising the step of detecting a symptom characteristic of the substance addiction, wherein said step of applying an electrical signal to said vagus nerve is initiated in response to the detection of said symptom.