Implantable device for patient communication
US6354299B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 30, 2000 |
| Grant date | Mar 12, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 30, 2020 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61N1/36082
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
An implantable device incorporating an acoustic transducer allows information and alerts to be communicated from the device to a patient. Sounds, including but not limited to buzzes, tones, sequences of tones, combinations of tones, complex sounds, and segments of reproduced or simulated human speech, are transmitted from an intracranially implanted portion of the device via bone conduction to the patient's ears, particularly the inner ears. In the disclosed embodiment, the acoustic transducer is used in cooperation with an implantable closed-loop system for the treatment of certain neurological disorders such as epilepsy, migraine headaches and Parkinson's disease, to warn the patient of an imminent seizure or other episode, to provide information to the patient on the state of the implantable apparatus, and to provide reminders and other information to the patient.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.