System and methods for determining nerve direction to a surgical instrument
First Claim
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1. A system comprising:
- a surgical accessory having at least one stimulation electrode; and
a control unit capable of electrically stimulating said at least one stimulation electrode on said surgical accessory, sensing a response of a nerve depolarized by said stimulation, determining a direction from the surgical accessory to the nerve based upon the sensed response, and communicating said direction to a user.
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Accused Products
Abstract
System (20) and related methods for performing surgical procedures and assessments, including the use of neurophysiology-based monitoring to determine nerve proximity and nerve direction to surgical instruments (30) employed in accessing a surgical target site.
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Citations
59 Claims
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1. A system comprising:
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a surgical accessory having at least one stimulation electrode; and
a control unit capable of electrically stimulating said at least one stimulation electrode on said surgical accessory, sensing a response of a nerve depolarized by said stimulation, determining a direction from the surgical accessory to the nerve based upon the sensed response, and communicating said direction to a user. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A surgical instrument comprising:
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an elongated body; and
a plurality of electrodes on the elongated body, each electrode being configured to produce electrical current pulses at a plurality of current levels, at least one current level being sufficient to depolarize a nerve when the elongated body is near the nerve. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
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48. A processing unit operable to determine ranges of nerve-stimulation threshold current levels for a plurality of electrodes on a surgical instrument inserted into a body.
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49. A method comprising:
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providing a system operable to determine a direction of a nerve from a surgical instrument inserted in a body; and
installing software in the system. - View Dependent Claims (50)
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51. A method of finding a direction of a nerve from a surgical instrument, the method comprises:
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electrically stimulating a first stimulation electrode on a surgical instrument inserted in a body with a first current signal;
determining whether a first stimulation current threshold has been bracketed by the first stimulation current signal;
electrically stimulating a second stimulation electrode on the surgical instrument with a second current signal; and
determining whether a second stimulation current threshold has been bracketed by the second stimulation current signal. - View Dependent Claims (52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59)
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Specification