Contingent cardio-protection for epilepsy patients

A method for detecting an epileptic event in a patient's body via one or more medical devices, comprising:

• receiving a first body signal during a first time period;
• receiving a second body signal during the first time period;
• determining a work level;
• determining whether there is a change in at least one of a direction, a latency, a magnitude, a rate, and a duration of the first body signal during the first time period;
• determining a change in the work level;
• determining whether there is a change in at least one of the direction, the latency, the magnitude, the rate, and the duration of the second body signal during the first time period that, based on the change in the work level, is commensurate with the change in the first body signal, in response to determining that there is the change at least one of the direction, the latency, the magnitude, the rate, and the duration of in the first body signal during the first time period;
• detecting the epileptic event in response to determining that there is the change in the second body signal that based on the change in the work level is incommensurate with the change in the first body signal;
• performing a responsive action in response to detecting the epileptic event, the responsive action being delivering a therapy where the therapy includes:
• initiating a first electrical signal to the first cranial nerve structure of the patient using a first polarity configuration in which the first electrode functions as a cathode and the second electrode functions as an anode, the first electrical signal is configured to induce action potentials in the first cranial nerve structure, wherein a charge accumulates at the anode and the cathode as a result of the first electrical signal;
• switching from the first polarity configuration to a second polarity configuration upon termination of the first electrical signal where the first electrode functions as the anode and the second electrode functions as the cathode in the second polarity configuration;
• and
• providing a second electrical signal to the second cranial nerve structure in the second polarity configuration, the second electrical signal is configured to induce action potentials in the second cranial nerve structure where at least a portion of the second electrical signal comprises the accumulated charge from the first electrical signal.