Cardiac pacing system by substituting native biological regulatory function

• US 8,010,195 B2
• Filed: 02/18/2011
• Issued: 08/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/05/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujikin Incorporated, National Cerebral And Cardiovascular Center
• Original Assignee: Fujikin Incorporated, National Cerebral And Cardiovascular Center
• Inventors: Sugimachi, Masaru, Sunagawa, Kenji, Sato, Takayuki
• Primary Examiner(s): KAHELIN, MICHAEL WILLIAM
• Application Number:
  US13/030,200
• Publication Number:
  US 20110144710A1
• Time in Patent Office: 193 Days
• Field of Search: 607/17
• US Class Current: 607/17
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36114 Cardiac control, e.g. by vagal stimulation stimulating the heart A61N1/362
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36117 for treating hypertension
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/365 controlled by a physiological parameter, e.g. heart potential evoked response A61N1/371
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36514 controlled by a physiological quantity other than heart potential, e.g. blood pressure controlled by two or more physical parameters A61N1/36585

Abstract

The present invention provides a cardiac pacing system based on biological activities, comprising: a) at least one nerve activity sensing means which senses nerve activity of a cardiac sympathetic nerve and/or a vagal nerve, and outputs a plurality of input nerve activity signals; b) a calculating means which receives the input nerve activity signals, calculates a transfer function by computing a Fourier transform of normal nerve activity signals and a normal heart rate signal from normal cardiovascular system, calculates an impulse response by computing an inverse Fourier transform of the transfer function, calculates a plurality of pacing signals for control of a heart rate using a convolution integral between the input nerve activity signals and the impulse response, and outputs the pacing signals; and c) a pacing means which receives the pacing signals, and stimulates the heart based on the pacing signals such that heart rate is regulated.

Claims

1. A cardiac pacing system based on biological activities, comprising:

a) at least one nerve activity sensing means which senses nerve activity of a cardiac sympathetic nerve and/or a vagal nerve, and outputs a plurality of input nerve activity signals;

b) a calculating means which receives the input nerve activity signals, calculates a transfer function by computing a Fourier transform of normal nerve activity signals and a normal heart rate signal from a normal cardiovascular system, calculates an impulse response by computing an inverse Fourier transform of the transfer function, calculates a plurality of pacing signals for control of a heart rate using a convolution integral between the input nerve activity signals and the impulse response, and outputs the pacing signals; and

c) a pacing means which receives the pacing signals, and stimulates the heart based on the pacing signals such that heart rate is regulated.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the pacing means is a cardiac pacemaker.

3. A method of treating cardiac diseases based on biological activities, comprising the steps of:

a) calculating a transfer function by computing a Fourier transform of normal nerve activity signals and a normal heart rate signal from a normal cardiovascular system and calculating at least one impulse response by computing an inverse Fourier transform of the transfer function;

b) sensing nerve activity of a cardiac sympathetic nerve and/or a vagal nerve issued by a cardiovascular system, and outputting a plurality of input nerve activity signals;

c) calculating a plurality of pacing signals for control of a heart rate using a convolution integral between the impulse response and the input nerve activity signals, comprising the substep of discriminating whether the input nerve activity signals are caused by normal cardiovascular activities or by abnormal cardiovascular activities; and

d) outputting the pacing signals for control of the heart rate only if the input nerve activity signals are determined to be caused by abnormal cardiovascular activities.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising, after step d), the steps of:

e) receiving the pacing signals output in step d); and

f) stimulating the nerve based on the pacing signals output in step d).