Treatment methods

• US 9,623,241 B2
• Filed: 05/06/2011
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Highland Instruments, Inc.,
• Original Assignee: Highland Instruments, Inc.,
• Inventors: Wagner, Timothy Andrew, Fregni, Felipe
• Primary Examiner(s): BOCKELMAN, MARK
• Application Number:
  US13/102,476
• Publication Number:
  US 20110245734A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,174 Days
• Field of Search: 607 2- 3, 607 46, 601 2
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36021 for treatment of pain
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/36025 for treating a mental or cerebral condition
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2/004 specially adapted for a specific therapy
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2/008 for pain treatment or analgesia
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2007/0026 Stimulation of nerve tissue
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/00 Ultrasound therapy lithotripsy A61B17/22, A61B17/225; massage using supersonic vibration A61H23/00 ; using ultrasound for introducing media into the body A61M37/0092

Abstract

The invention generally relates to methods for treating osteoarthritis. In certain embodiments, methods of the invention involve providing stimulation to a subject'"'"'s central nervous system to modulate a signal sent to or from the subject'"'"'s joint, thereby treating osteoarthritis.

Claims

1. A method for treating osteoarthritis, the method comprising:

providing one or more noninvasive transcranial stimulation sources; and

providing, via the one or more noninvasive transcranial stimulation sources, a combination of transcranial electrical energy and transcranial mechanical energy that is delivered transcranially through C3/C4 in a manner that generates one or more currents within a region of a brain of the subject beneath C3/C4 that disperse from the region within the brain to thereby modulate a signal sent to or from the subject'"'"'s joint, wherein the stimulation is provided over a plurality of days, thereby treating osteoarthritis.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the signal is a pain related signal.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the signal is an inflammatory related signal.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the signal is processed in the brain.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the combination of transcranial electrical energy and transcranial mechanical energy is focused to the primary motor cortex.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the combination of transcranial electrical energy and transcranial mechanical energy is focused to the somatosensory cortex.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the joint in a knee joint.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises analyzing a target region of a subject to determine where to locate the one or more noninvasive transcranial stimulation sources.