ENHANCED DORSAL HORN STIMULATION USING MULTIPLE ELECTRICAL FIELDS

• US 20160022994A1
• Filed: 07/22/2015
• Published: 01/28/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/24/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Boston Scientific Neuromodulation Corporation (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Boston Scientific Neuromodulation Corporation (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Moffitt, Michael A., Hershey, Bradley Lawrence, Zhu, Changfang
• Granted Patent: US 9,662,495 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/0551 Spinal or peripheral nerve electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36071 Pain
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36132 using patient feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36182 Direction of the electrical field, e.g. with sleeve around stimulating electrode
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36192 Amplitude modulation

Abstract

A method of providing therapy to a patient having a medical condition comprises delivering electrical stimulation energy to the spinal cord of the patient in accordance with a stimulation program that preferentially stimulates dorsal horn neuronal elements over dorsal column neuronal elements in the spinal cord. The delivered electrical stimulation energy generates a plurality of electrical fields having different orientations that stimulate the dorsal horn neuronal elements.

Claims

1. A method of providing therapy to a patient having a medical condition, comprising:

delivering electrical stimulation energy to the spinal cord of the patient in accordance with a stimulation program that preferentially stimulates dorsal horn neuronal elements over dorsal column neuronal elements in the spinal cord, wherein the delivered electrical stimulation energy generates a plurality of electrical fields having different orientations that stimulate the dorsal horn neuronal elements.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the electrical stimulation energy is delivered to the spinal cord of the patient without creating the sensation of paresthesia in the patient.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the electrical stimulation energy is delivered to the spinal cord of the patient as a pulsed electrical waveform, and the plurality of electrical fields are respectively generated on a pulse-by-pulse basis.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of electrical fields achieve temporal summation of stimulation in the dorsal horn neuronal elements.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the electrical stimulation energy is delivered from an electrical stimulation lead implanted along a longitudinal axis of the spinal cord of the patient.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of electrical fields are orientated in different medio-lateral directions or orientated in different rostro-caudal directions.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising cycling through the electrical fields multiple times.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical fields are generated the same number of times for each electrical field cycle.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical fields are generated a different number of times for each electrical field cycle.

10. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical fields are generated in the same order during the electrical field cycles.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical fields are generated in a different order during the electrical field cycles.

12. The method of claim 7, wherein the electrical field cycles are bursted on and off at a burst frequency.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the burst frequency matches a pathological burst frequency of medical condition.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the delivered electrical stimulation energy is anodic.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the electrical stimulation energy is delivered from a plurality of electrodes implanted adjacent the spinal cord of the patient.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the electrodes are radially segmented electrodes.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising determining a stimulation threshold for each of the electrodes, and generating each of the electrical fields based on the stimulation thresholds of the electrodes.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein determining the stimulation threshold for each of the electrodes comprises automatically delivering electrical energy from each of the electrodes at different amplitudes, automatically measuring an evoked compound action potential in response to the deliverance of the electrical energy from each of the electrodes, and automatically recording the amplitude at which the evoked compound action potential is measured for each of the electrodes.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein determining the stimulation threshold for each of the electrodes comprises automatically delivering electrical energy from each of the electrodes at different amplitudes, acquiring feedback from the patient in response to the deliverance of the electrical energy from each of the electrodes, and automatically recording the amplitude at which paresthesia is perceived by the patient for each of the electrodes.

20. The method of claim 1, wherein the medical condition is chronic pain.