Techniques for reducing pain associated with nerve stimulation
First Claim
1. Apparatus comprising:
- an electrode device, configured to be coupled to a site of a subject;
a sensor, configured to sense a physiological parameter of the subject indicative of cardiac activity of the subject; and
a control unit, configured to;
drive the electrode device to apply to the site a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including a plurality of pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse,synchronize the first and second bursts with a feature of a cardiac cycle of the subject, andset (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 30 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be less than 10 seconds, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval, the percentage being less than 67%.
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Abstract
Apparatus is provided including an electrode device and a control unit. The electrode device is configured to be coupled to a site of a subject selected from the group consisting of: a vagus nerve, an epicardial fat pad, a pulmonary vein, a carotid artery, a carotid sinus, a coronary sinus, a vena cava vein, a right ventricle, a right atrium, and a jugular vein. The control unit is configured to drive the electrode device to apply to the site a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including a plurality of pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse, and set (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 20 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be less than 10 seconds, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval between, the percentage being less than 67%. Other embodiments are also described.
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Citations
39 Claims
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1. Apparatus comprising:
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an electrode device, configured to be coupled to a site of a subject; a sensor, configured to sense a physiological parameter of the subject indicative of cardiac activity of the subject; and a control unit, configured to; drive the electrode device to apply to the site a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including a plurality of pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse, synchronize the first and second bursts with a feature of a cardiac cycle of the subject, and set (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 30 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be less than 10 seconds, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval, the percentage being less than 67%. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. Apparatus comprising:
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an electrode device, configured to be coupled to a site of a subject; and a control unit, configured to; drive the electrode device to apply to the site a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including a plurality of pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse, and set (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 30 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be between 400 ms and 1500 ms, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval, the percentage being less than 67%. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. Apparatus comprising:
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an electrode device, configured to be coupled to a site of a subject; and a control unit, configured to; drive the electrode device to apply to the site a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including between two and six pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse, and set (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 30 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be less than 10 seconds, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval, the percentage being less than 67%. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method comprising:
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coupling an electrode device to a site of a subject selected from the group consisting of;
a vagus nerve, an epicardial fat pad, a pulmonary vein, a carotid artery, a carotid sinus, a coronary sinus, a vena cava vein, a right ventricle, a right atrium, and a jugular vein;using the electrode device, applying, to the site, a current in at least first and second bursts, the first burst including a plurality of pulses, and the second burst including at least one pulse; and setting (a) a pulse repetition interval (PRI) of the first burst to be on average at least 30 ms, (b) an interburst interval between initiation of the first burst and initiation of the second burst to be less than 10 seconds, (c) an interburst gap between a conclusion of the first burst and the initiation of the second burst to have a duration greater than the average PRI, and (d) a burst duration of the first burst to be less than a percentage of the interburst interval, the percentage being less than 67%. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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Specification