Methods for bilateral renal neuromodulation
First Claim
1. A method of treating a disease of a human patient diagnosed with at least one of hypertension, heart failure, chronic kidney disease, and renal failure by bilateral renal neuromodulation, the method comprising:
- modulating a first neural fiber that innervates a first kidney of the patient via a first electric field that inhibits neural activity entering and exiting the first kidney, wherein the first electric field is delivered via a first energy delivery element positioned within a first renal artery of the patient; and
modulating a second neural fiber that innervates a second kidney of the patient via a second electric field that inhibits neural activity entering and exiting the second kidney, wherein the second electric field is delivered via a second energy delivery element positioned within a second renal artery of the patient,wherein modulating the first and second neural fibers significantly improves a measureable physiological parameter corresponding to the disease of the patient,wherein at least one of the first kidney and second kidney continues to secrete renin in the patient after delivering the first and second electric fields.
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Abstract
Methods and apparatus are provided for bilateral renal neuromodulation, e.g., via a pulsed electric field, via a stimulation electric field, via localized drug delivery, via high frequency ultrasound, via thermal techniques, etc. Such neuromodulation may effectuate irreversible electroporation or electrofusion, necrosis and/or inducement of apoptosis, alteration of gene expression, action potential attenuation or blockade, changes in cytokine up-regulation and other conditions in target neural fibers. In some embodiments, neuromodulation is applied to neural fibers that contribute to renal function. In some embodiments, such neuromodulation is performed in a bilateral fashion. Bilateral renal neuromodulation may provide enhanced therapeutic effect in some patients as compared to renal neuromodulation performed unilaterally, i.e., as compared to renal neuromodulation performed on neural tissue innervating a single kidney.
587 Citations
16 Claims
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1. A method of treating a disease of a human patient diagnosed with at least one of hypertension, heart failure, chronic kidney disease, and renal failure by bilateral renal neuromodulation, the method comprising:
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modulating a first neural fiber that innervates a first kidney of the patient via a first electric field that inhibits neural activity entering and exiting the first kidney, wherein the first electric field is delivered via a first energy delivery element positioned within a first renal artery of the patient; and modulating a second neural fiber that innervates a second kidney of the patient via a second electric field that inhibits neural activity entering and exiting the second kidney, wherein the second electric field is delivered via a second energy delivery element positioned within a second renal artery of the patient, wherein modulating the first and second neural fibers significantly improves a measureable physiological parameter corresponding to the disease of the patient, wherein at least one of the first kidney and second kidney continues to secrete renin in the patient after delivering the first and second electric fields. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for bilateral renal neuromodulation of a human patient with diagnosed hypertension, diagnosed heart failure, diagnosed chronic kidney disease, or diagnosed renal failure, the method comprising:
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inhibiting neural activity along renal nerves that contribute to function of the right kidney of the patient via a first neuromodulation element within a right renal artery of the patient; and inhibiting neural activity along renal nerves that contribute to function of the left kidney of the patient via a second neuromodulation element within a left renal artery of the patient, wherein inhibiting neural activity along the renal nerves that contribute to function of the right and left kidneys of the patient results in a therapeutically beneficial reduction in the clinical symptoms of hypertension in the patient, wherein at least one of the right and left kidney continues to secrete renin in the patient after inhibiting neural activity along the renal nerves. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A method for bilateral renal denervation of a human patient diagnosed with hypertension, heart failure, chronic kidney disease, or renal failure, the method comprising:
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reducing neural activity along nerves that innervate a first kidney of the patient via radio frequency (RF) energy delivered from a first electrode within a first renal artery of the patient; and reducing neural activity along nerves that innervate a second kidney of the patient via RF energy delivered from a second electrode within a second renal artery of the patient, wherein reducing neural activity along the nerves that innervate the first and second kidneys of the patient results in a therapeutically beneficial reduction in central sympathetic overactivity in the patient, wherein at least one of the first kidney and second kidney continues to secrete renin in the patient after reducing neural activity along the renal nerves. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16)
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Specification