Implantable medical device for providing chronic condition therapy and acute condition therapy using vagus nerve stimulation
First Claim
1. A method of treating a medical condition in a patient using an implantable medical device, comprising:
- applying, to a cranial nerve, a first electrical signal including at least one microburst of a plurality of pulses during a first time period to treat the medical condition, the first time period being a time period during which there is no indication that an acute condition has occurred;
detecting an indication of an acute event associated with the medical condition based on at least one factor preprogrammed to the implantable medical device, the at least one preprogrammed factor comprising at least one physiological characteristic particular to the patient; and
applying, to the cranial nerve, a second electrical signal to treat the medical condition in response to the indication of the acute event and for treating the acute event, the second electrical signal including at least one burst of a second plurality of pulses during a second time period that is a non-microburst, wherein the first time period occurs prior to the second time period.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Disclosed herein are methods, systems, and apparatus for treating a medical condition in a patient using an implantable medical device (IMD). The IMD is capable of generating a first electrical signal for treating a medical condition, for example epilepsy. The first electrical signal relates to a long term therapy during a first time period in which there is no indication that the patient'"'"'s brain is in an stable state, the first electrical signal being a microburst stimulation signal. The implantable device is also capable of generating a second electrical signal for treating the medical condition. The second electrical signal relates to a short term therapy during a second time period, in response to an indication that the patient'"'"'s brain is in an unstable state. The second electrical signal in one example, may be a conventional stimulation signal.
513 Citations
19 Claims
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1. A method of treating a medical condition in a patient using an implantable medical device, comprising:
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applying, to a cranial nerve, a first electrical signal including at least one microburst of a plurality of pulses during a first time period to treat the medical condition, the first time period being a time period during which there is no indication that an acute condition has occurred; detecting an indication of an acute event associated with the medical condition based on at least one factor preprogrammed to the implantable medical device, the at least one preprogrammed factor comprising at least one physiological characteristic particular to the patient; and applying, to the cranial nerve, a second electrical signal to treat the medical condition in response to the indication of the acute event and for treating the acute event, the second electrical signal including at least one burst of a second plurality of pulses during a second time period that is a non-microburst, wherein the first time period occurs prior to the second time period. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. An implantable medical device comprising a memory coupled to a processor, the memory having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by the processor, cause the implantable medical device to:
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apply a first electrical signal including at least one microburst of a plurality of pulses during a first time period to treat a medical condition of a patient, the first period being a time period during which there is no indication that an acute condition has occurred; detect an indication of an acute event associated with the medical condition based on at least one factor preprogrammed to the implantable medical device, the at least one preprogrammed factor comprising at least one physiological characteristic particular to the patient; and apply a second electrical signal to treat the medical condition in response to the indication of the acute event and for treating the acute event, the second electrical signal including at least one burst of a second plurality of pulses during a second time period that is a non-microburst, wherein the first time period occurs prior to the second time period. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. An implantable medical device for treating a medical condition in a patient, the implantable medical device comprising:
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an implantable electrical signal generator configured to generate electrical signals; at least one lead coupled to the electrical signal generator and configured to apply the electrical signals to a cranial nerve of the patient; a processor; and a memory coupled to the processor and having instructions stored thereon that, when executed by the processor, cause the implantable medical device to; apply, by the at least one lead, a first electrical signal including at least one microburst of a plurality of pulses during a first time period to treat a medical condition of a patient, the first period being a time period during which there is no indication that an acute condition has occurred; detect an indication of an acute event associated with the medical condition based on at least one factor preprogrammed to the implantable medical device, the at least one preprogrammed factor comprising at least one physiological characteristic particular to the patient; apply, by the at least one lead, a second electrical signal to treat the medical condition in response to the indication of the acute event and for treating the acute event, the second electrical signal including at least one burst of a second plurality of pulses during a second time period that is a non-microburst, wherein the first time period occurs prior to the second time period; monitor the at least one physiological characteristic during application of the second electrical signal to determine whether the at least one characteristic is active; and in response to determining that the at least one physiological characteristic is not active, reapply the first electrical signal. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19)
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Specification