Therapy program modification based on an energy threshold

• US 8,583,250 B2
• Filed: 01/26/2009
• Issued: 11/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Gerber, Martin T., Rondoni, John C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Koharski, Christopher D
• Assistant Examiner(s): MAHMOOD, NADIA AHMAD
• Application Number:
  US12/989,682
• Publication Number:
  US 20110040352A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,751 Days
• Field of Search: 607/59
• US Class Current: 607/59
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/054 with electrotherapy
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/14276 specially adapted for implantation
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1723 using feedback of body parameters, e.g. blood-sugar, pressure measurement of body parameters A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36185 Selection of the electrode configuration
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37264 Changing the program; Upgrading firmware
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising

Abstract

A therapy program is modified to decompose a therapy field generated by therapy delivery by a medical device according to a therapy program into a plurality of subfields based on a comparison between an energy associated with the therapy program and a threshold value. The therapy field defined by the therapy program may be decomposed into a plurality of subfields when an electrical stimulation energy of the stimulation signal defined by the therapy program exceeds the maximum energy output of the medical device or of a channel of the medical device. Therapy subprograms may be generated for each of the therapy subfields. An energy associated with each of the therapy subfields may be less than the energy threshold value of the medical device.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

comparing an energy associated with a therapy program to an energy threshold value with a processor, wherein therapy delivery to a patient by a medical device according to the therapy program generates a therapy field, and wherein the energy associated with the therapy program is based on a power required by the medical device to generate the therapy field according to the therapy program; and

generating a plurality of therapy subprograms with the processor to decompose the therapy field into a plurality of therapy subfields based on the comparison between the energy associated with the therapy program and the energy threshold value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the therapy field includes at least one of a stimulation field, an electrical field or an activation field.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving information that defines the therapy field; and

generating the therapy program based on an algorithmic model of the therapy field.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein generating the therapy program based on the algorithmic model of the therapy field comprises:

selecting a stimulation template based on a size and shape of the algorithmic model of the therapy field, wherein the stimulation template is associated with stimulation parameter values; and

defining the therapy program with the stimulation parameter values associated with the stimulation template.

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising receiving input from a user, wherein the input includes the information that defines the therapy field.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy, and a second energy associated with at least one of the plurality of subfields is less than the first energy associated with the therapy field.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the therapy field comprises a first volume, and a total volume of each of the plurality of therapy subfields is less or equal to the first volume.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the therapy field comprises a first volume, and a total volume of each of the plurality of therapy subfields is greater than or equal to the first volume.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the energy threshold value is based on a maximum energy output of the medical device or a channel of the medical device.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the energy threshold value is based on an expected minimum energy value that the medical device can provide at the end of a predetermined time period.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising delivering therapy to a patient via the medical device according to the plurality of subprograms.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein delivering therapy to the patient via the medical device according to the plurality of subprograms comprises interleaving the delivery of the therapy according to each of the plurality of subprograms.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein delivering therapy to the patient via the medical device according to the plurality of subprograms comprises delivering the therapy according to the plurality of subprograms substantially simultaneously via different channels of the medical device.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the therapy program defines a stimulation signal duration value and an amplitude value, and wherein comparing the energy associated with the therapy field to the energy threshold value comprises determining the energy associated with the therapy field based on the signal duration value and the amplitude value.

15. A system comprising:

a memory that stores a therapy program comprising at least one stimulation parameter, wherein therapy delivery to a patient by a medical device according to the therapy program generates a therapy field; and

a processor that determines an energy associated with the therapy program, compares the energy associated with the therapy program to an energy threshold value, and generates a plurality of subprograms that decompose the therapy field into a plurality of therapy subfields based on the comparison between the energy and the energy threshold value, wherein the energy associated with the therapy program is based on a power required by the medical device to generate the therapy field according to the therapy program.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the therapy field includes at least one of a stimulation field, an electrical field or an activation field.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the processor receives information that defines the therapy field, and generates the therapy program based on an algorithmic model of the therapy field.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the processor generates the therapy program by at least selecting a stimulation template based on a size and shape of the algorithmic model of the therapy field, wherein the stimulation template is associated with stimulation parameter values, and defines the therapy program with the stimulation parameter values associated with the stimulation template.

19. The system of claim 15, further comprising a user interface, wherein the processor receives input from a user selecting the therapy program for therapy delivery to the patient.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and at least one of the therapy subprograms is associated with a second energy that is less than the energy threshold value.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein at least two of the subprograms are associated with different energies.

22. The system of claim 15, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and each subfield is associated with a second energy, and a sum of the second energies associated with the plurality of subfields is less than or equal to the first energy.

23. The system of claim 15, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and each subfield is associated with a second energy, and a sum of the second energies associated with the plurality of subfields is greater than or equal to the first energy.

24. The system of claim 15, wherein the energy threshold value is based on a maximum energy output of the medical device or a channel of the medical device.

25. The system of claim 15, wherein the energy threshold value is based on an expected minimum energy value that the medical device can provide at the end of a predetermined time period.

26. The system of claim 15, further comprising the medical device that delivers therapy to the patient according to the plurality of subprograms.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein the medical device separates the therapy delivery according to each of the subprograms by an interval of time that is less than a duration of a carryover effect of delivery of stimulation according to at least one of the subprograms.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein the medical device comprises the processor.

29. The system of claim 15, further comprising a medical device programmer comprising the processor.

30. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that cause a programmable processor to:

compare a first energy associated with a therapy program to an energy threshold value, wherein therapy delivery to a patient by a medical device according to the therapy program generates a therapy field, and wherein the energy associated with the therapy program is based on a power required by the medical device to generate the therapy field according to the therapy program; and

generate a plurality of therapy subprograms to decompose the therapy field into a plurality of therapy subfields based on the comparison between the energy associated with the therapy program and the energy threshold value, wherein each of the therapy subprograms is associated with a second energy that is less than the energy threshold value.

31. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 30, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and each subfield is associated with a second energy, and a sum of the second energies associated with the plurality of subfields is less than or equal to the first energy.

32. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 30, wherein the energy threshold value is based on at least one of a maximum energy output of the medical device or a channel of the medical device, or an expected minimum energy value that the medical device can provide at the end of a predetermined time period.

33. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 30, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and at least one of the therapy subprograms is associated with a second energy that is less than the energy threshold value.

34. A system comprising:

means for comparing an energy associated with a therapy program to an energy threshold value, wherein therapy delivery to a patient by a medical device according to the therapy program generates a therapy field, and wherein the energy associated with the therapy program is based on a power required by the medical device to generate the therapy field according to the therapy program; and

means for generating a plurality of therapy subprograms to decompose the therapy field into a plurality of therapy subfields based on the comparison between the energy associated with the therapy program and the energy threshold value.

35. The system of claim 34, wherein the energy associated with the therapy field comprises a first energy and at least one of the therapy subprograms is associated with a second energy that is less than the energy threshold value.

36. The system of claim 34, wherein the energy threshold value is based on at least one of a maximum energy output of the medical device or a channel of the medical device, or an expected minimum energy value that the medical device can provide at the end of a predetermined time period.