Method and device for desynchronizing neuronal brain activity, controller and method for treating neuronal device and/or psychiatric disorders

• US 20080046025A1
• Filed: 06/15/2007
• Published: 02/21/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Forschungszentrum Jã¼Lich GmbH (Bundesrepublik Deutschland)
• Original Assignee: Forschungszentrum Jã¼Lich GmbH (Bundesrepublik Deutschland)
• Inventors: Tass, Peter
• Granted Patent: US 8,116,874 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/45
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0529 Electrodes for brain stimulation
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0551 Spinal or peripheral nerve electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36082 Cognitive or psychiatric applications, e.g. dementia or Alzheimer's disease

Abstract

The invention relates to a method and a device for desynchronizing neural brain activity, a controller and a method for treating neurological and/or psychiatric disorders. According to the invention, low-frequency successions of high-frequency pulse trains are applied in corresponding brain regions. This suppresses symptoms and even brings about a cure in some cases.

Claims

1-72. -72. (canceled)

73. A device comprising:

at least one electrode and/or at least one chip for stimulating cerebral neurons which have a pathological oscillatory activity with a pathological frequency;

at least two contact points which are distributed over at least one electrode and/or over at least one chip, which output electrical stimulus signals to the brain; and

a controller, which drives the contact points in such a way that the contact points output low-frequency sequences of high-frequency pulse trains to the brain, the frequency of a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains that is applied via an individual contact point essentially corresponding to the pathological frequency or an integral multiple thereof with an integral multiplication factor of less than 1000.

75. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the device comprises a sensor to detect the pathological activity, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains having a frequency of 0.1 Hz to 50 Hz, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains with individual pulses having a duration of ≧

0 to 3000 μ

s, wherein the controller outputs in particular control signals which generate individual pulses which are essentially charge-neutral, and/or which generate individual pulses having an amplitude within the range of ≧

0 to 16 V, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate short high-frequency pulse trains, wherein the controller outputs in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains with 2 to 100 individual pulses, and/or which generate high-frequency pulse trains with 3 to 15 individual pulses, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have a length of at most ¾

of the period of the low-frequency succession of the high-frequency pulse trains, wherein the controller outputs in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have a length of 1/10 to ¼

of the period of the low-frequency succession of the high-frequency pulse trains, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which comprise individual pulses having a frequency of 50 to 250 Hz, wherein the controller outputs in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which comprise individual pulses having a frequency of 80 to 150 Hz, and which generate in particular high-frequency pulse trains which comprise individual pulses having a frequency of 100 to 140 Hz, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate essentially charge-neutral high-frequency pulse trains which comprise different non-charge-neutral individual pulses.

76. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate individual pulses which all have the same amplitude within a high-frequency pulse train, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate individual pulses of which at least two have different amplitudes within a high-frequency pulse train.

77. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate individual pulses which all have the same duration within a high-frequency pulse train, or

in that the controller outputs control signals which generate individual pulses of which at least two have different durations within a high-frequency pulse train.

78. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains whose amplitudes are of an order of magnitude of 0.001 to 16 V and in particular of an order of magnitude of 2 to 7 V.

79. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains having a constant period, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains having different periods, the controller outputting in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains within which the periods of the high-frequency pulse trains vary according to deterministic algorithms and/or stochastic algorithms and/or deterministic-stochastic algorithms.

80. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains in which at least two individual pulses have different forms and/or different amplitudes and/or different durations, the controller outputting in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains in which at least two individual pulses have different forms and/or different amplitudes and/or different durations and which are varied according to deterministic algorithms and/or stochastic algorithms and/or deterministic-stochastic algorithms, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate low-frequency successions of high-frequency pulse trains which comprise 2 to 100 high-frequency pulse trains, the controller outputting in particular control signals which generate low-frequency sequences of high-frequency pulse trains which essentially correspond to the pathological frequency of the illness or a small integral multiple, and/or which generate low-frequency successions of high-frequency pulse trains within which the pattern of high-frequency pulse trains varies according to deterministic algorithms and/or stochastic algorithms and/or deterministic-stochastic algorithms, the controller outputting in particular control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two high-frequency pulse trains are different.

81. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which all contain the same number of individual pulses, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two contain a different number of individual pulses.

82. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains having the same frequency, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two high-frequency pulse trains have different frequencies.

83. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have individual pulses having the same amplitude, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two high-frequency pulse trains differ with regard to the amplitude of at least one individual pulse.

84. The device as claimed in claim 73 to 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have individual pulses having the same duration, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two high-frequency pulse trains differ with regard to the duration of at least one individual pulse.

85. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have individual pulses having the same form, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains of which at least two high-frequency pulse trains differ with regard to the form of at least one individual pulse.

86. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains which have the same succession of periods between successive individual pulses, or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains in which the succession of periods between successive individual pulses differs between at least two successive individual pulses.

87. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller outputs control signals which generate a strictly periodic succession of high-frequency pulse trains, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate high-frequency pulse trains in which the succession of periods between successive individual pulses differs between at least two successive individual pulses, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains in which the time interval between successive high-frequency pulse trains is varied in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in deterministic-stochastic fashion, and/or

the controller outputs control signals which generate a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains in which the time interval between successive high-frequency pulse trains and/or the pattern of the respective high-frequency pulse train are varied in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic-stochastic fashion, and/or

the controller is configured in such a way that a potential difference is present between different contact points of the electrode and/or the electrodes and/or between at least one contact point and a metallic counterpart, and/or

the controller is configured in such a way that it administers the high-frequency pulse trains applied via the respective N contact points with a temporal shift of the successive high-frequency pulse trains of essentially an N-th of the period of the pathological activity.

88. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller is configured in such a way that it determines latencies between stimulus administering and stimulus response of the body, the controller using averaged stimulus responses in particular for the latency determination, or using the instant of the maximum phase reset of a stimulated neural rhythm for the latency determination, and/or the controller outputting in particular control signals which apply the respective high-frequency pulse trains earlier by a temporal magnitude which essentially corresponds to the latency.

89. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

the controller is configured in such a way that it sets the order of the high-frequency pulse trains applied via the individual contact points, and/or

the controller is configured in such a way that, during each stimulus application, it administers the high-frequency pulse trains always with the same order via the individual contact points, and/or

the controller is configured in such a way that, during at least two stimulus applications, it administers the high-frequency pulse trains with different orders via the individual contact points, the controller being configured in particular in such a way that, during successive stimulus applications, it varies the order in which the high-frequency pulse trains are administered via the individual contact points in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic-stochastic fashion.

90. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

a controller which applies successive sequences strictly periodically, or

a controller which varies the time intervals between successive sequences in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic-stochastic fashion.

91. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

a controller which applies successions of identical sequences, or

a controller which, within a succession of sequences, varies the sequences in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic-stochastic fashion.

92. The device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, wherein

a controller, in a sequence, drives only m≧

2 of the in total n (m≦

n) contact points with a time delay of essentially an n-th of a period of the rhythm to be desynchronized, and/or

a controller which varies the configuration of the respective sequence within an order of sequences in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic/stochastic fashion, and/or

a controller, within an order of sequences, varies the configurations thereof and/or the time intervals between successive sequences and/or the patterns of the high-frequency pulse trains used in the respective sequences in deterministic fashion and/or in stochastic fashion and/or in combined deterministic/stochastic fashion, and/or

a controller determines measurement signals which via at least one of the stimulation electrodes or stimulation contact points and/or at least one additional contact point and/or at least one other sensor and uses said measurement signals for demand-controlled stimulation, in particular a controller which varies the duration of the pauses in demand-controlled fashion, and/or which, within a succession of sequences, varies in demand-controlled fashion the configuration of the respective sequence and/or the patterns of the high-frequency pulse trains used in the respective sequence.

93. A controller, wherein the controller generates control patterns for a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains, and generates the control patterns as claimed in claim 75.

97. A method for use of the device as claimed in claim 73 or 74, comprising:

finding the optimum target point for therapy.

74. A device comprising:

at least one electrode and/or at least one chip to stimulate cerebral neurons which have a pathological oscillatory activity with a period duration T;

n contact points which are distributed over at least one electrode and/or over at least one chip, which output electrical stimulus signals to the brain; and

a controller, which drives the contact points in such a way that the contact points output low-frequency sequences of high-frequency pulse trains to the brain, the temporal shift between two successive high-frequency pulse trains that are applied by different contact points amounting to T/n±

0.75 T.

94. A method for treating neurological and/or psychiatric disorders in which morbidly synchronous neural activity is present, comprising:

via at least two contact points which are distributed over at least one electrode and/or over at least one chip, applying electrical stimuli in the form of low-frequency high-frequency pulse trains to the morbidly synchronously firing neurons of the brain and/or to fiber paths connected to said neurons and/or to synchronously firing neurons connected thereto, the frequency of a low-frequency sequence of high-frequency pulse trains that is applied via an individual contact point essentially corresponding to the pathological frequency of the morbidly synchronous neural activity or an integral multiple thereof with an integral multiplication factor of less than 1000.

95. A method for treating neurological and/or psychiatric disorders in which morbidly synchronous neural activity with a pathological period duration T is present, comprising:

via n points which are distributed over at least one electrode and/or over at least one chip, applying electrical stimuli in the form of low-frequency high-frequency pulse trains to the morbidly synchronously firing neurons of the brain and/or to fiber paths connected to said neurons and/or to synchronously firing neurons connected thereto, the temporal shift between two successive high-frequency pulse trains applied via different contact points amounting to T/n±

0.75 T.