Medtronic, Inc.

Medtronics, Inc.

Frans L Gielen

Gary William King

Mark Turner Rise

Warren L Starkebaum

Michael J Schendel

Daryle Petersen

Victor P Duysens

Paul Van Venrooij

Keith R Mullett

Johan F Gijsberg

Dan Gruia

Apparatus and techniques to address problems associated with lead migration, patient movement or position, histological changes, neural plasticity or disease progression. Disclosed are techniques for implanting a lead having therapy delivery elements, such as electrodes or drug delivery ports, within a vertebral or cranial bone so as to maintain these elements in a fixed position relative to a desired treatment site. The therapy delivery elements may thereafter be adjusted in situ with a position control mechanism and/or a position controller to improve the desired treatment, such as electrical stimulation and/or drug infusion to a precise target. The therapy delivery elements may be positioned laterally in any direction relative to the targeted treatment site or toward or away from the targeted treatment site. A control system maybe provided for open- or closed-loop feedback control of the position of the therapy delivery elements as well as other aspects of the treatment therapy.

Techniques for positioning therapy delivery elements within a spinal cord or brain

A directional brain stimulation lead assembly provides a lead body and an insulating member defining one or more windows that selectively expose portions of electrodes carried by the lead body to produce a directional stimulation current field. The lead assembly can achieve more effective localization of electrical stimulation to very small brain targets, and thereby reduce the incidence of material side effects caused by collateral stimulation of brain tissue adjoining a desired brain target. In addition, the directional lead can sense brain activity on a more localized basis.

Directional brain stimulation and recording leads

Apparatus and techniques to address the problems associated with lead migration, patient movement or position, histological changes, neural plasticity or disease progression. Disclosed are techniques for implanting a lead having therapy delivery elements, such as electrodes or drug delivery ports, within a vertebral or cranial bone so as to maintain these elements in a fixed position relative to a desired treatment site. The therapy delivery elements may thereafter be adjusted in situ with a position control mechanism and/or a position controller to improve the desired treatment, such as_electrical stimulation and/or drug infusion to a precise target. The therapy delivery elements may be positioned laterally in any direction relative to the targeted treatment site or toward or away from the targeted treatment site. A control system maybe provided for open- or closed-loop feedback control of the position of the therapy delivery elements as well as other aspects of the treatment therapy.

Apparatus and techniques to address the problems associated with lead migration, patient movement or position, histological changes, neural plasticity or disease progression. Disclosed are techniques for implanting a lead having therapy delivery elements, such as electrodes or drug delivery ports, within a vertebral or cranial bone so as to maintain these elements in a fixed position relative to a desired treatment site. The therapy delivery elements may thereafter be adjusted in situ with a position control mechanism and/or a position controller to improve the desired treatment therapy, such as electrical stimulation and/or drug infusion to a precise target. The therapy delivery elements may be positioned laterally in any direction relative to the targeted treatment site or toward or away from the targeted treatment site. A control system maybe provided for open- or closed-loop feedback control of the position of the therapy delivery elements as well as other aspects of the treatment therapy.

Techniques for positioning therapy delivery elements within a spinal cord or a brain

The present invention addresses the problems associated with lead migration, patient movement or position, histological changes, neural plasticity or disease progression. The present invention discloses techniques for implanting a lead having therapy delivery elements, such as electrodes or drug delivery ports, within a vertebral or cranial bone so as to maintain these elements in a fixed position relative to a desired treatment site. The therapy delivery elements may thereafter be adjusted in situ with a position control mechanism and/or a position controller to improve the desired treatment therapy. The present invention also discloses techniques for non-invasively positioning and re-positioning therapy delivery elements after implant to provide electrical stimulation and/or drug infusion to a precise target. A position control mechanism and/or a position controller are provided for adjusting in situ the position of the therapy delivery elements relative to the targeted tissue of interest. The therapy delivery elements may be positioned laterally in any direction relative to the targeted treatment site or toward or away from the targeted treatment site. A control system may be provided for open- or closed-loop feedback control of the position of the therapy delivery elements as well as other aspects of the treatment therapy.

A lead for brain target localization in functional stereotactic brain surgery, the lead having at its distal end a micro-electrode for use in recording single cell discharge patterns so as to identify functional boundaries between brain structures; and a macro-electrode for delivering test stimulation for determining target location for optimal therapeutic benefit and minimum side effects. The macro-test stimulation electrode is carried at the end of the lead length, and has a conventional surface area in the range of 1-20 mm.sup.2 for stimulating chronic stimulation conditions. The micro-electrode is positioned at the distal end of an axially aligned probe which extends distally from the macro-electrode, and has a surface area adapted to enable a single cell recording; e.g., between 0.01 and 1000 .mu.m.sup.2. In an alternate embodiment, the tip micro-electrode is retractable so that the lead can be used for chronic brain stimulation.

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Eckelrade, Netherlands

Frans L Gielen