Systems and methods for treatment of medical conditions related to the central nervous system and for enhancing cognitive functions

• US 20090099623A1
• Filed: 10/03/2008
• Published: 04/16/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Neuronix Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Neuronix Ltd.
• Inventors: Bentwich, Jonathan
• Application Number:
  US12/285,416
• Publication Number:
  US 20090099623A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/45
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36025 for treating a mental or cerebral condition
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36082 Cognitive or psychiatric applications, e.g. dementia or Alzheimer's disease
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/40 Applying electric fields by inductive or capacitive coupling microwave apparatus A61N5/00; Applying radio-frequency signals
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2/006 for magnetic stimulation of nerve tissue
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2/02 using magnetic fields produced by coils, including single turn loops or electromagnets A61N2/12 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/0613 Apparatus adapted for a specific treatment

Abstract

Systems and methods for diagnosing and treating various brain-related conditions, and/or for modifying at least one of cognitive, behavioral, or affective functions or skills in individuals. The method of diagnosing and treating a brain-related condition includes the steps of: (i) identifying at least a brain region associated with the brain-related condition; (ii) stimulating the brain region by employing at least one electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic, and photoelectric stimulus; (iii) optionally, stimulating at least one cognitive feature associated with the brain region; and (iv) optionally, subjecting the brain region to a treatment including at least one of cell replacement therapy, cell regenerative therapy and cell growth.

Claims

1. A neuronal medical device, comprising:

an analyzer system comprising at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer, the analyzer system operative to measure at least one property of an individual'"'"'s condition to obtain a measured property, the measured property being related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature, wherein the analyzer system also calculates a norm value from the at least one brain region or the at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals, the analyzer system comparing the measured property with the norm value and providing a resultant value; and

a stimulator system interfaced with said analyzer system including a brain stimulator module and at least one of a brain stimulator and a cognitive stimulator, where the brain stimulator includes at least one non-invasive brain stimulator operative to selectively stimulate single or multiple brain loci at least one brain region via discharge of excitatory or inhibitory stimulation energy, said stimulator module operative to position the stimulator so that stimulation energy is directed to the single or multiple brain loci at least one brain region brain region, wherein the brain region is within the left prefrontal region, frontal lobes, cingulate gyrus, hemispheres, temporal lobe, frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, amygdala region, cerebellum, hippocampus, anthreonal, Peabody, plaques, tangles, brain stem, medula, corpus collasum, subcortical region, cortex, gyrus, white matter and grey matter, based on the resultant value, and

the cognitive stimulator being configured to provide at least one cognitive stimulus to modify at least one cognitive feature associated with the brain region based on the resultant value.

3. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the brain stimulator and the cognitive stimulator form a single, integrated device.

4. The medical device of claim 3, wherein the single, integrated device comprises at least one electrode in communication with at least one of ear, nose, scalp and mouth of an individual.

5. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the brain stimulator comprises at least one invasive stimulator operative to selectively provide singular or multiple site stimuli to the at least one brain region or to a different brain region.

6. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the brain stimulator is configured to provide at least one of electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic and photoelectric stimulus.

7. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the brain stimulator includes at least one electromagnetic stimulator and another source of neuronal stimulation.

8. The medical device of claim 1, further comprising a controller interfacing the analyzer system and the stimulator system to operate at least one of the brain stimulator and the cognitive stimulator.

9. The medical device of claim 1, further comprising:

a treatment module operatively connected to the analyzer system, the treatment module being configured to output data in response to the resultant value to the stimulator system; and

an in-vivo stimulator configured to subject the brain region to a treatment including at least one of cell replacement therapy, cell regenerative therapy and cell growth.

10. The medical device of claim 1, wherein the stimulators are positionable to direct stimulation energy at single or multiple brain loci in brain regions associated with Alzheimer'"'"'s disease, dementia, autism spectrum disorder, mild cognitive impairment, memory loss, aging, ADHD, Parkinson'"'"'s disease, depression, addiction, substance abuse, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, memory enhancement, intelligence enhancement, concentration enhancement, well-being or mood enhancement, self-esteem enhancement, language capabilities, verbal skills, vocabulary skills, articulation skills, alterness, focus, relaxation, perceptual skills, thinking, analytical skills, executive functions, sleep enhancement, motor skills, coordination skills, sports skills, musical skills, inter-personal skills, social skills and affective skills.

11. The medical device of claim 10, wherein the stimulators are positionable to direct stimulation energy at single or multiple brain loci in brain regions associated with Alzheimer'"'"'s disease.

2. A neuronal medical device, comprising:

an analyzer system comprising at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer operative to provide a measured property related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature, calculates a norm value from the at least one brain region or the at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals, and provide a resultant comparative value; and

a stimulator system interfaced with said analyzer system and operative to selectively stimulate, at least non-invasively, single or multiple brain loci at least one brain region via discharge of excitatory or inhibitory stimulation energy, said stimulator system including a plurality of discrete non-invasive stimulators to discharge stimulation energy and positionable to direct stimulation energy at single or multiple brain loci within at least one of the left prefrontal region, frontal lobes, cingulate gyrus, hemispheres, temporal lobe, frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital lobe, amygdala region, cerebellum, hippocampus, anthreonal, Peabody, plaques, tangles, brain stem, medula, corpus collasum, subcortical region, cortex, gyrus, white matter and grey matter, based on the resultant value.

12. A medical device for treatment of a brain-related condition or for enhancement of a cognitive function in an individual, comprising:

a stimulator system comprising;

at least one brain stimulator configured to at least selectively and non-invasively stimulate a localized brain region, wherein the localized brain region is associated with the brain-related condition or with the cognitive function; and

at least one cognitive stimulator configured to selectively stimulate at least one cognitive feature associated with the localized brain region; and

an in-vivo stimulator configured to subject the localized brain region to a treatment including at least one of cell replacement therapy, cell regenerative therapy and cell growth.

13. The medical device of claim 12, further comprising:

an analyzer system, including at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer, the analyzer system being operative to measure at least one property of the brain related condition to obtain a measured property, the measured property being related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature, wherein the analyzer system also calculates a norm value from at least one brain region or at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals, the analyzer system comparing the measured property with the norm value and provide a resultant value to the stimulator system; and

a controller interfacing the analyzer system and the stimulator system to operate at least one of the brain stimulator and the cognitive stimulator.

14. The medical device of claim 12, wherein the brain stimulator system is a helmet.

15. A medical device comprising:

an analyzer system comprising at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer, the analyzer system being operative to measure at least one property of an individual'"'"'s condition to obtain a measured property, the measured property being related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature, wherein the analyzer system also calculates a norm value from the at least one brain region or the at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals, the analyzer system comparing the measured property with the norm value and providing a resultant value;

a treatment module operatively connected to the analyzer system, the treatment module being configured to output data in response to the resultant value;

a first stimulator operative to discharge excitatory or inhibitory stimulation and configured to receive data from the treatment module and position energy discharging stimulators to stimulate the at least one brain region; and

a second stimulator associated with the first stimulator, the second stimulator being configured to activate the at least one cognitive feature of the individual.

16. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the first stimulator comprises at least one non-invasive brain stimulator and at least one invasive brain stimulator, wherein the at least one non-invasive brain stimulator and the at least one invasive brain stimulator are configured to selectively stimulate the at least one brain region.

17. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the non-invasive brain stimulator comprises at least one of electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic and photoelectric electrodes.

18. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the first stimulator comprises at least one invasive brain stimulator configured to selectively stimulate the at least one brain region.

19. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the second stimulator is configured to provide at least one cognitive stimulus relevant to the cognitive feature.

20. The medical device of claim 15, wherein the first stimulator provides non-invasive stimulation energy.

21. The medical device of claim 15, further comprising an assessment device configured to provide feedback to at least one of the first stimulator and the second stimulator, based on responses to stimuli from the first and second stimulators.

22. The medical device of claim 15, further comprising a controller configured to operate the first and second stimulators in response to the resultant value.

23. A method of treating cognitive impairments, comprising the steps of:

identifying a brain region associated with a cognitive impairment;

subjecting the brain region to at least one of electrical, magnetic, electromagnetic and photoelectric stimuli; and

simultaneously, modifying a cognitive function associated with the brain region.

24. The method of claim 23, further comprising the steps of:

subjecting the brain region to a treatment including at least one of cell replacement therapy, cell regenerative therapy and cell growth; and

optionally, subjecting the brain region to a pharmacological treatment.

25. A method of therapy for impaired cognitive functions, the method comprising the steps of:

providing a first stimulus to a pre-defined brain region of an individual without stimulating physically adjacent brain regions, the pre-defined brain region being functionally associated with an impaired cognitive function; and

providing at least one cognitive stimulus to the patient, to elicit a response involving the impaired cognitive function.

26. The method of claim 25, further comprising the steps of:

measuring at least one local brain function of the pre-defined brain region to obtain a local measurement;

comparing the local measurement to a normative value to obtain an evaluation data; and

adjusting, in response to the evaluation data, at least one of the steps of providing a first stimulus and providing at least one cognitive stimulus.

27. The method of claim 25, further comprising:

measuring the response to the first stimulus and to the cognitive stimulus, to obtain a cognition data; and

adjusting, based on the cognition data, at least one of the steps of providing a first stimulus and providing at least one cognitive stimulus.

28. A method of brain therapy, comprising:

providing an analyzer system including at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer;

the analyzer system measuring at least one property of an individual'"'"'s condition to obtain a measured property related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature;

the analyzer system calculating a norm value from at least one brain region or at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals; and

the analyzer system comparing the measured property value with the norm value to provide a resultant value.

29. A method of therapy, comprising:

measuring a local brain function of at least one brain region to produce a local measurement relative to a norm value of an individual;

evaluating the local measurement relative to a normative value of a group of individuals, to produce an evaluation datum;

adjusting at least one of one or more non-invasive stimulators and one or more one cognitive stimulators in response to the evaluation datum; and

providing stimuli from the at least one or more non-invasive stimulators and the least one or more cognitive stimulators to the at least one brain region.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising:

measuring a response to the stimuli to produce a cognition measurement; and

adjusting at least one of the non-invasive and cognitive stimulators in response to the cognition measurement.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein the step of providing non-invasive stimuli includes providing electromagnetic stimuli and another form of neuronal stimuli, to selectively stimulate the at least one brain region.

32. A method of therapy for a cognitive symptom of a disease, comprising:

selectively stimulating at least one brain region functionally associated with a cognitive symptom, without physically stimulating adjacent regions; and

providing at least one cognitive stimulus selected to elicit a response involving the cognitive symptom.

33. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

measuring local brain function at the at least one brain region to produce a local measurement;

evaluating the local measurement relative to a normative value to produce an evaluation datum; and

adjusting at least one of the brain region stimulating and the at least one cognitive stimulus in response to the evaluation datum.

34. The method of claim 32, further comprising:

measuring the response to the stimulus to produce a cognition measurement; and

adjusting at least one of the selective stimulating and the at least one cognitive stimulus in response to the cognition measurement.

35. The method of claim 32, wherein the at least one brain region is a brain deficient region.

36. The method of claim 32, wherein the at least one brain region is associated with a memory function disease.

37. The method of claim 32, wherein the at least one brain region is associated with Alzheimer'"'"'s disease.

38. A method of neuronal therapy comprising:

providing an analyzer system including at least one of a brain analyzer and a cognitive analyzer;

the analyzer measuring at least one property of an individual'"'"'s condition, the measured property being related to at least one of at least one brain region and at least one cognitive feature;

the analyzer calculating a norm value from at least one brain region or at least one cognitive feature of healthy or diseased groups of individuals;

the analyzer comparing the measured property with the norm value and provide a resultant value;

providing a stimulator system including;

providing one or more non-invasive stimulators to selectively provide singular or multiple site stimuli to at least one brain region associated with the property;

providing one or more cognitive stimulators to selectively provide cognitive stimuli to at least one cognitive function relevant to the at least one property; and

providing a controller and interfacing the controller with the analyzer system and the stimulator system, the controller operating at least one of the one or more non-invasive brain stimulators and one or more one cognitive stimulators.

39. A method of neuronal therapy, comprising:

providing a module with a plurality of discrete energy emitting stimulators;

positioning the module on a patient;

positioning said discrete stimulator to direct stimulation energy at single or multiple brain loci in brain regions associated with Alzheimer'"'"'s disease, dementia, autism spectrum disorder, mild cognitive impairment, memory loss, aging, ADHD, Parkinson'"'"'s disease, depression, addiction, substance abuse, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, memory enhancement, intelligence enhancement, concentration enhancement, well-being or mood enhancement, self-esteem enhancement, language capabilities, verbal skills, vocabulary skills, articulation skills, alertness, focus, relaxation, perceptual skills, thinking, analytical skills, executive functions, sleep enhancement, motor skills, coordination skills, sports skills, musical skills, inter-personal skills, social skills and affective skills; and

stimulating said associated single or multiple brain loci.

40. A system for neuronal assessment and treatment, comprising:

a computer and optional control module;

a user energy stimulation module optionally including a TMS stimulator;

a cognitive stimulation module;

a diseased brain localization module; and

an optional cognitive testing module.

41. The system of claim 40 further including a cognitive progress monitoring module.

42. The system of claim 40, further including an associated comparative norm data base module interfaced with said computer.

43. A medical treatment device comprising,

a computer system with user access;

synchronized magnetic and cognitive training stimulator systems for applying a stimulus;

an Executive Control Module for managing the sequencing and state of the treatment session and application of stimulus;

a decision making system based on patient response making determinations based on that response, alerting an operator or modifying script to optimize cognitive training; and

and END module for determining the presence of Alzheimer'"'"'s disease.