Technique for adjusting the locus of excitation of electrically excitable tissue with paired pulses

A method of inducing action potentials at an adjustable locus of electrically excitable tissue within an organism with a generator, the method comprising the steps of:

• delivering a first pulse of electrical stimulation to the tissue using a first set of at least one cathode within an array of electrodes implanted near the tissue to generate a first action potential area and a first subthreshold potential area in the tissue with respect to a return electrode disposed within the organism;
• delivering a second pulse of electrical stimulation to the tissue using a second set of at least one cathode within the array to generate a second action potential area and a second subthreshold potential area in the tissue with respect to the return electrode;
• the second pulse substantially non-simultaneous with the first pulse;
• adjusting a first pulse parameter of the first pulse to cause a corresponding adjustment of the first subthreshold potential area;
• and
• adjusting a second pulse parameter of a second pulse to cause a corresponding adjustment of the second subthreshold potential area;
• and
• wherein a deep tissue suprathreshold potential area results from a superposition of the first substhreshold potential area and second subthreshold potential area.

A method of inducing an action potential at an adjustable locus of electrically excitable tissue within an organism using a two-dimensional array of electrodes comprising the steps of:

• implanting the two-dimensional array of electrodes near the tissue;
• selecting at least two electrodes from the two-dimensional array of electrodes;
• for each of the at least two selected electrodes, delivering a substantially non-simultaneous corresponding pulse of electrical stimulation to the tissue to generate an action potential area and a subthreshold potential area in the tissue with respect to a return electrode disposed within the organism, the corresponding pulse having a corresponding pulse parameter;
• adjusting the corresponding pulse parameter for at least one of the selected electrodes to cause an adjustment of the corresponding subthreshold potential area, and
• wherein a deep tissue suprathreshold potential area is induced from a superposition of the two subthreshold potential areas.

A method of inducing action potentials at an adjustable locus of electrically excitable tissue within an organism with a generator, the method comprising the steps of:

• delivering a first pulse of electrical stimulation to the tissue using a first set of at least one cathode within an array of electrodes implanted near the tissue to generate a first action potential area and a first subthreshold potential area in the tissue with respect to a return electrode disposed within the organism;
• delivering a second pulse of electrical stimulation to the tissue using a second set of at least one cathode within the array to generate a second subthreshold potential area in the tissue with respect to the return electrode;
• the second pulse substantially non-simultaneous with the first pulse;
• adjusting a first pulse parameter of the first pulse to cause a corresponding adjustment of the first subthreshold potential area;
• and
• adjusting a second pulse parameter of a second pulse to cause a corresponding adjustment of the second subthreshold potential area;
• and
• wherein a deep tissue suprathreshold potential area results from a superposition of the first substhreshold potential area and second subthreshold potential area.