Non-invasive neuro stimulation system
First Claim
1. An apparatus for treating a patient, comprising:
- a device having a pulse generator for generating a pulse for delivery to the skin of a patient; and
a control, coupled to the pulse generator, for controlling the pulse generator;
a plurality of probes adapted to be coupled to the control to deliver the pulse, wherein the plurality of probes comprises a first probe having a first plurality of electrodes in a first electrode configuration and a second probe having a second plurality of electrodes different from the first plurality of electrodes, the second plurality of electrodes being in a second electrode configuration different from the first configuration,the control adapted to detect and differentiate between the first and second electrode configurations and provide pulse generator options to a user based on an electrode configuration detected by the control,wherein at least one probe is adapted to deliver the pulse to at least a first electrode and a second electrode to determine a relative impedance and determine a treatment area based on the relative impedance, and wherein at least one probe is capable of identifying an active area for treatment and deliver a treatment pulse to the treatment area based at least in part on the relative impedance, and whereinat least one probe is adapted to re-direct the treatment pulse based at least in part on a change in the relative impedance.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A device (10, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90) is used to apply an electric pulse or spike to a patient to treat the patient. The device can have a series of preset treatments programmed therein. A user can select a treatment from menus displayed on a display (100). The impedance of the skin and underlying tissue to be treated can be measured prior to the treatment to locate active areas on the skin for treatment. A variety of probes can be used with the device, with the device automatically detecting the type of probe attached. Multiple electrodes can be used on the probe, which allows the active areas in contact with the probe to be identified prior to treatment to allow the treatment to concentrate on the active areas.
53 Citations
29 Claims
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1. An apparatus for treating a patient, comprising:
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a device having a pulse generator for generating a pulse for delivery to the skin of a patient; and a control, coupled to the pulse generator, for controlling the pulse generator; a plurality of probes adapted to be coupled to the control to deliver the pulse, wherein the plurality of probes comprises a first probe having a first plurality of electrodes in a first electrode configuration and a second probe having a second plurality of electrodes different from the first plurality of electrodes, the second plurality of electrodes being in a second electrode configuration different from the first configuration, the control adapted to detect and differentiate between the first and second electrode configurations and provide pulse generator options to a user based on an electrode configuration detected by the control, wherein at least one probe is adapted to deliver the pulse to at least a first electrode and a second electrode to determine a relative impedance and determine a treatment area based on the relative impedance, and wherein at least one probe is capable of identifying an active area for treatment and deliver a treatment pulse to the treatment area based at least in part on the relative impedance, and wherein at least one probe is adapted to re-direct the treatment pulse based at least in part on a change in the relative impedance. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An apparatus for treating a patient, comprising:
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a device having a pulse generator for generating a pulse for delivery to the skin of a patient; a control for controlling the pulse generator; and a patient engaging device having a plurality of electrodes adapted to contact the skin, the control adapted to generate a map of one or more active areas and determine a relative impedance between at least two of the plurality of electrodes to detect an impedance of the skin in contact with the electrodes at specific electrode sites, wherein the patient engaging device is capable of directing stimulation to one or more sites from a selected subset of the plurality of electrodes based at least in part on the determined relative impedance, the patient engaging device further adapted to re-direct stimulation based at least in part on a change in the relative impedance, wherein the control is capable of sequentially directing pulses to treat the one or more active areas at predetermined intervals. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. An apparatus, comprising:
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a pulse generator adapted to generate a pulse train to preferentially stimulate nerves rather than muscle; at least one probe coupled to the pulse generator to transmit the pulse train to the skin of a patient, the at least one probe comprising a plurality of evenly-spaced electrodes arranged in a multi-dimensional array, the array comprising a plurality of electrode pairs, each electrode pair comprising adjacent electrodes having opposite polarities; and an impedance sensing device adapted to detect an impedance of the skin through the plurality of electrodes and further adapted to determine and map one or more active areas for treatment based on the relative impedance between the plurality of electrode pairs, wherein a configuration of the plurality of electrodes enables the impedance sensing device to identify an optimal treatment area, the configuration further enabling transmission of the pulse train to the optimal treatment area based, at least partially, on the relative impedance between at least two electrode pairs, the configuration further enabling the impedance sensing device to adjust identification of the optimal treatment area, and re-direct transmission of the pulse train, in response to changes in relative impedance between the at least two electrode pairs and the map of the one or more active areas. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification