Systems and methods for delivering vagal nerve stimulation
AssigneeCardiac Pacemakers, Inc.
InventorsWeiying Zhao, Quan Ni, Stephen B. Ruble, Jason J. Hamann
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Abstract
According to various method embodiments, a person is indicated for a therapy to treat a cardiovascular disease, and the therapy is delivered to the person to treat the cardiovascular disease. Delivering the therapy includes delivering a vagal stimulation therapy (VST) to a vagus nerve of the person at a therapeutically-effective intensity for the cardiovascular disease that is below an upper boundary at which upper boundary the VST would lower an intrinsic heart rate during the VST.
Claims20
An implantable neurostimulator-implemented method for providing neurostimulation of a cervical vagus nerve to prophylactically or therapeutically treat a cardiovascular disease, comprising:
- providing an implantable neurostimulator comprising a pulse generator configured to deliver electrical stimulation to cause action potentials to propagate in both afferent and efferent directions;
- defining an upper boundary the electrical therapeutic stimulation;
- defining a dose of the electrical stimulation to prophylactically or therapeutically treat the cardiovascular disease using continuously-cycling, intermittent pulsed electrical signal at an intensity that does not exceed the upper boundary that avoids acute physiological side effects and with an unchanging cycle that is not triggered by a sensor;
- delivering the dose to the vagus nerve according to a schedule via the pulse generator through at least one electrode;
- and
- receiving a signal from an external device and respond to the received signal by adjusting the dose of the electrical stimulation, without exceeding the upper limit.
A system for providing neurostimulation of a cervical vagus nerve to prophylactically or therapeutically treat a cardiovascular disease, comprising:
- an implantable neurostimulator, including a pulse generator configured to deliver a dose electrical stimulation through at least one electrode to cause action potentials to propagate in both afferent and efferent directions to prophylactically or therapeutically treat the cardiovascular disease using continuously-cycling, intermittent pulsed electrical signal at an intensity that does not exceed the upper boundary that avoids acute physiological side effects and with an unchanging cycle that is not triggered by a sensor;
- and a controller configured to receive a signal from an external device and respond to the received signal by adjusting the dose of the electrical stimulation without exceeding the upper limit.
A vagus nerve neurostimulator for modulating autonomic tone to prophylactically or therapeutically treat a cardiovascular disease, comprising:
- a pulse generator configured to intermittently generate a pulsed electrical signal, including generating the pulsed electrical signal during a signal ON time and not generating the pulsed electrical signal during a signal OFF time, wherein the intermittently-generated, pulsed electrical signal has an amplitude, a frequency, a pulse width, and duty cycle to provide an effective dose to treat the cardiovascular disease
- a lead and an electrode, wherein the lead is configured to be used to electrically couple the electrode to the pulse generator, wherein the intermittently-generated, pulsed electrical signal is applied to a vagus nerve via the electrode to propagate action potentials in both afferent and efferent directions along the vagus nerve at an intensity that avoids acute physiological side effects;
- and
- a leadless heart rate sensor.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.