Responsive Electrical Stimulation for Movement Disorders

• US 20110004268A1
• Filed: 09/13/2010
• Published: 01/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/05/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Neuropace Inc.
• Original Assignee: Neuropace Inc.
• Inventors: Fischell, Robert E., Tcheng, Thomas K., Pless, Benjamin D.
• Granted Patent: US 8,594,795 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/45
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36067 Movement disorders, e.g. tremor or Parkinson disease stimulating motor muscle A61N1/36003
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36135 using physiological parameters

Abstract

An implantable neurostimulator system for treating movement disorders includes a sensor, a detection subsystem capable of identifying episodes of a movement disorder by analyzing a signal received from the sensor, and a therapy subsystem capable of supplying therapeutic electrical stimulation to treat the movement disorder. The system treats movement disorders by detecting physiological conditions characteristic of an episode of symptoms of the movement disorder and selectively initiating therapy when such conditions are detected.

Claims

1. A system for treating a movement disorder in a human patient comprising:

an implantable responsive neurostimulator configured to;

receive and continuously monitor at least one signal from at least one sensor, each at least one sensor adapted to sense electrical activity of the brain;

process the at least one signal to digitize the at least one signal;

analyze the at least one signal to determine whether a tremor characteristic of an episode of the movement disorder is occurring by;

measuring an amplitude of the at least one signal;

calculating an average amplitude of the at least one signal over a predetermined period of time;

comparing the average amplitude to a dynamic threshold that is a fixed offset of a long-term moving average amplitude wherein the long-term moving average amplitude is calculated from data in which no tremors occur;

detect a tremor event if the calculated average amplitude exceeds the dynamic threshold; and

deliver a treatment to the patient from the neurostimulator for so long as the tremor event is detected and to cease delivery of the treatment when the tremor event is no longer detected.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the neurostimulator further is configured to deliver a treatment in the form of electrical stimulation for so long as the tremor event is detected and to cease delivery of the electrical stimulation when the tremor event is no longer detected.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the form of electrical stimulation comprises a plurality of bursts of biphasic pulses.

4. The system of claim 2 wherein the form of electrical stimulation comprises a digitized approximation of a waveform with a sinusoidal morphology.

5. The system of claim 2 wherein the form of electrical stimulation has a direct current component.

6. The system of claim 2 wherein the form of electrical stimulation is characterizable by parameters that define at least one of pulse morphology, pulse duration, morphology of pulses in a burst, and interburst interval.