SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR IMPLANTABLE LEADLESS TISSUE STIMULATION

• US 20130282070A1
• Filed: 06/20/2013
• Published: 10/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/20/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: EBR Systems, Inc.
• Original Assignee: EBR Systems, Inc.
• Inventors: Cowan, Mark W., Riley, Richard E., Brisken, Axel F., Echt, Debra S.
• Granted Patent: US 9,452,286 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/3
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/326 for promoting growth of cells, e.g. bone cells
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36007 of urogenital or gastrointestinal organs, e.g. for incontinence control
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36021 for treatment of pain
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36038 Cochlear stimulation
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3604 for correcting spinal deformities, e.g. scoliosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36071 Pain
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37217 characterised by the communication link, e.g. acoustic or tactile
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37288 Communication to several implantable medical devices within one patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3756 Casings with electrodes thereon, e.g. leadless stimulators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3787 from an external energy source

Abstract

Systems and methods are disclosed to stimulate tissue to treat medical conditions involving tissues such as the bone, spine, stomach, nerves, brain and the cochlea. The disclosed invention uses electrical stimulation of the tissue, where vibrational (or acoustic) energy from a source is received by an implanted device and converted to electrical energy and the converted electrical energy is used by implanted electrodes to stimulate the pre-determined tissue sites. The vibrational energy is generated by a controller-transmitter, which could be either implanted or located externally. The vibrational energy is received by a receiver-stimulator, which could be located at or close to the stimulation site.

Claims

1. A system for stimulating tissue comprising:

an acoustic controller-transmitter; and

an implantable acoustic receiver-stimulator having an electrode assembly adapted to be in direct contact with the tissue, wherein the controller-transmitter is adapted to transmit acoustic energy and the receiver-stimulator is adapted to receive acoustic energy and convert it to electrical energy, and the controller-transmitter provides energy and signal information to the receiver-stimulator to provide electrical stimulation to the tissue.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the tissue is chosen from the list of bone, spine, nerves, gastrointestinal tract, brain or cochlea.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein bone is stimulated for healing.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein bone healing includes bone fractures, bone fusions, or joint replacement.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the receiver-stimulator is incorporated in a surgical attachment device that is used for bone healing.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the surgical attachment device is a pin, cage, plate, or bone graft.

7. The system of claim 3, wherein the stimulation is achieved by a combination of electrical energy and acoustic energy.

8. The system of claim 2, wherein the spine is stimulated to reduce pain.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller-transmitter operation is controlled by the patient.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the controller-transmitter is programmed to treat continuous pain.

11. The system of claim 2, wherein the tissue is the gastrointestinal tract.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the gastrointestinal tract is stimulated for treating one or more medical conditions chosen from the list comprising eating disorders, gastroparesis, and gastric reflux.

13. The system of claim 2, wherein the tissue is the nerve.

14. The system of claim 13, where stimulating the nerve treats one or more medical conditions chosen from the list comprising headache;

facial pain;

pelvic pain heart failure;

hypertension;

obesity;

migraine;

neuropsychiatric disorders;

urinary, gastrointestinal, urge or stress urinary incontinence, and fecal incontinence.

15. The system of claim 2, wherein the tissue is the brain.

16. The system of claim 15, where the electrode assembly is located at or near a site selected from the group consisting of the pallido-thalamic axons (AL), the lenticulo-thalamic fiber pathway (LT), substantia nigra pars reticulata (SNr), external segment of globus pallidus (GPe), subthalamic to pallidal fiber tracts, putamen, putamen to GPe fibers, the ventrobasal (VB) area of the thalamus, the ventral posteromedial (VPM) nucleus, the ventral posterolateral nucleus (VPL), the ventrolateral nucleus (VL), the posterior complex of the thalamus (PO), the motor cortex, the sensory cortex, the cingulate gyms, the medial lemniscus, the internal capsule, the periventricular grey (PVG) matter, the periaqueductal grey (PAG) matter, the nucleus of tractus solitarius (NTS), the sub thalamic nucleus, the hippocampus, the medial thalamus, the temporal lobe, or any ischemic area of the brain tissue.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the implantable receiver-stimulator is adapted to be placed and secured to stimulate brain sites effective in altering brain activity as a therapeutic treatment.

18. The system of claim 2, wherein the tissue is the cochlea.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the receiver-stimulator comprises an acoustic receiver which receives acoustic energy and generates alternating current, means for converting the alternating current to a pre-determined waveform, and electrodes adapted to deliver the pre-determined waveform to stimulate the cochlea.