Artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode

Abstract

The utility model discloses an artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode which comprises a flexible electrode tip and a colloidal silica body, the flexible electrode tip is located at one end of the colloidal silica body, the artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode further comprises a sub-control electrode array group located on the colloidal silica body, and the sub-control electrode array group comprises four quadrant contact electrodes. The four quadrant contact electrodes surround the silica gel body by one circle, and the directions of the four quadrant contact electrodes are different; each quadrant contact electrode can work independently; the quadrant sub-control electrode provided by the utility model can solve the problem of potential ineffective or inefficient stimulation caused by fixed unidirectional discharge of the existing artificial cochlea, and further optimizes the sound hearing effect of an implanter.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model belongs to cochlear implant technical field, and particularly relates to quadrant sub-control electrode of cochlear implant. BACKGROUND

[0002] The traditional cochlear implant system includes an implant in the body and a sound processing unit outside the body, the sound processing unit converts the sound signal in the environment into an electric signal, and then the electric signal is transmitted into the implant, the implant sends the signal to the stimulating electrode in the cochlea in the form of electric stimulation, stimulates the auditory nerve fiber through the stimulating electrode, and finally the brain recognizes the electric signal as sound to produce hearing. The implant includes a receiving coil, a stimulator and an electrode, the receiving coil is responsible for receiving external sound signals, the stimulator converts the signal from the receiving coil into an electric signal, and the electrode transmits the electric signal to the auditory nerve.

[0003] In the whole cochlear implant system, the cochlear implant electrode is a very important part of the cochlear implant. The existing cochlear implant electrode can only realize fixed one-way stimulation to the participating auditory nerve after being inserted into the cochlea, which may cause ineffective or inefficient stimulation, resulting in poor sound effect of some cochlear implant recipients. SUMMARY

[0004] In order to solve the above problems, the technical scheme of the utility model is as follows: a quadrant sub-control electrode of cochlear implant, comprising a flexible electrode head and a silica gel body, the flexible electrode head is located at one end of the silica gel body, further comprising a sub-control electrode array group located on the silica gel body, the sub-control electrode array group comprises four quadrant contact electrodes, the four quadrant contact electrodes are arranged around the silica gel body, and the directions of the four quadrant contact electrodes are different; each of the quadrant contact electrodes can work independently.

[0005] Preferably, among the four quadrant contact electrodes, two non-adjacent quadrant contact electrodes are arranged on the two sides of the silica gel body in the radial direction.

[0006] Preferably, a plurality of sub-control electrode array groups are arranged on the silica gel body along the length direction of the silica gel body.

[0007] Preferably, the quadrant contact electrodes in different sub-control electrode array groups can work independently.

[0008] Preferably, it further comprises a first conical ring and a second conical ring arranged on the periphery of the silica gel body, the first conical ring and the second conical ring are arranged in sequence along the length direction of the silica gel body.

[0009] Preferably, the first conical ring is closer to the flexible electrode head than the second conical ring, and the maximum cross-sectional radius of the first conical ring is smaller than that of the second conical ring.

[0010] Preferably, the quadrant contact electrode is an inner buckle shape.

[0011] Preferably, 24 or 48 sub-control electrode array groups are arranged on the silica gel body.

[0012] The artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode has the advantages that:

[0013] 1. The artificial cochlea sub-control electrode is provided with a sub-control electrode array group, and four quadrant contact electrodes with different orientations are used to stimulate the residual auditory nerve cells and / or fibers of the cochlea in a single or group discharge mode, and the stimulation is considered in four directions, thereby solving the problem of potential ineffective or inefficient stimulation caused by the fixed unidirectional stimulation of the existing artificial cochlea, and further optimizing the sound hearing effect of the implant.

[0014] 2. The artificial cochlea sub-control electrode is provided with a plurality of sub-control electrode array groups on the silica gel body, and the quadrant contact electrodes in different sub-control electrode array groups can be freely matched and independently worked.

[0015] 3. The artificial cochlea sub-control electrode is provided with a first conical ring for prompting that all sub-control electrode array groups have been implanted into the cochlea, and a second conical ring is arranged to block the electrode implant body, so that the round window of the cochlea does not need to be sealed by fascia, thereby preventing lymphatic fluid leakage, reducing cochlear infection, and reducing electrode displacement and extrusion. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a cochlear cross-sectional structure schematic diagram with a cochlear axis;

[0017] Figure 2 It is a cochlear cross-sectional structure schematic diagram without a cochlear axis;

[0018] Figure 3 It is a whole structure schematic diagram of the artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode of one specific embodiment of the utility model;

[0019] Figure 4 It is a structure schematic diagram of the sub-control electrode array group in the artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode of one specific embodiment of the utility model;

[0020] Figure 5 It is a structure schematic diagram of the sub-control electrode array group in the artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode of one specific embodiment of the utility model;

[0021] Figure 6 It is a structure schematic diagram of the sub-control electrode array group in the artificial cochlea quadrant sub-control electrode of one specific embodiment of the utility model;

[0022] Figure 7Part structure diagram of quadrant control electrode of cochlear implant of a specific embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 8 Structure diagram of first and second conical rings in quadrant control electrode of cochlear implant of a specific embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0024] The preferred embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0025] Referring to Figure 1 , the cochlea cross-sectional structure of human body is three tubular, which are respectively scala tympani, scala media and scala vestibuli. Generally, it is advocated that the cochlear implant electrode is inserted into the scala tympani. The anatomical structure names around the scala tympani are respectively the cochlear axis, the basilar membrane and the osseous spiral lamina, the cochlear lateral wall and the cochlear lower wall. The cochlear structure with the cochlear axis and the cochlear duct interval, the residual auditory nerve cells and fibers are located in the cochlear axis, the basilar membrane and the osseous spiral lamina. Referring to Figure 2 , the cochlear structure without cochlear axis, the residual auditory nerve cells and fibers are located in the cochlear lateral wall. The present cochlear implant electrode contact is single fixed in direction, combined with the poor consistency of the electrode position in the cochlea, all or part of the electrode stimulation may be ineffective or low efficiency, which leads to that part of the cochlear implant recipients cannot respond to the electric stimulation or show poor response.

[0026] Referring to Figure 3 , the cochlear implant quadrant control electrode of the present application comprises a flexible electrode head 1, a silica gel body 2, a control electrode array group 3, a stimulating electrode lead 10, a cochlear outer loop electrode 8 and a loop electrode lead 9 connected with the cochlear outer loop electrode 8. The flexible electrode head 1 is located at one end of the silica gel body 2, and the control electrode array group 3 is located on the silica gel body 2. One part of the stimulating electrode lead 10 is located in the silica gel body 2 and connected with the control electrode array group 3, and the other end extends out of the silica gel body 2; the part of the stimulating electrode lead 10 located in the silica gel body 2 comprises a stimulating electrode lead wave part 6 and a stimulating electrode lead spiral part 7, and the stimulating electrode lead wave part 6 is arranged closer to the control electrode array group 3. The cochlear outer loop electrode 8 is located on the outer surface of the silica gel body 2 and is arranged away from the control electrode array group 3. One end of the loop electrode lead 9 extends into the silica gel body 2 and is connected with the cochlear outer loop electrode 8, and the other end extends out of the silica gel body 2. The cochlear outer loop electrode 8 is a hollow tubular.

[0027] Referring to Figures 4-6 , the control electrode array group 3 comprises four quadrant contact electrodes, the four quadrant contact electrodes are arranged around one side of the silica gel body 2, and the directions of the four quadrant contact electrodes are all different; each quadrant contact electrode can work independently. Further, in the four quadrant contact electrodes, two non-adjacent quadrant contact electrodes can be arranged on the two sides of the radial direction of the silica gel body 2.

[0028] The current on the quadrant contact electrodes of the different quadrants forms a loop with the perilymph fluid and the extracochlear loop electrode 8, and the quadrant contact electrodes of the different quadrants can also form a loop, so that charge balance is achieved, the tissues in the cochlea are protected from damage caused by long-term electrical stimulation, and the stability and reliability of the implant are ensured.

[0029] In a specific embodiment, for a cochlea with a cochlear axis and / or cochlear duct spacing, the quadrant contact electrodes facing the cochlear axis, the basilar membrane frontal spiral plate are turned on to discharge. For a cochlea without a cochlear axis, the quadrant contact electrodes facing the cochlear lateral wall and the bottom wall are turned on to discharge. It is also possible to try to turn on a group of controlled electrode arrays at the same time regardless of the structure of the cochlea, which will not be described here.

[0030] In a specific embodiment, when the controlled electrode array group 3 is inserted into the cochlea, the four quadrant contact electrodes can correspond to four directions in the cochlea scala tympani respectively: cochlear axis (inner), cochlear lateral wall (outer), basilar membrane and spiral plate (upper), and cochlear lower wall (lower).

[0031] For the convenience of description, the four quadrant contact electrodes in the controlled electrode array group 3 are represented by A electrode, B electrode, C electrode, and D electrode respectively. Referring to Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the A electrode emits stimulation towards the cochlear axis, the B electrode emits stimulation towards the basilar membrane and spiral plate, the C electrode emits stimulation towards the cochlear lateral wall, and the D electrode emits stimulation towards the cochlear lower wall.

[0032] Referring to Figure 5 , in general, one of the quadrant contact electrodes of the controlled electrode array group 3 can be stimulated respectively; referring to Figure 6 , A+B, C+D electrode stimulation can also be observed, and the neural response waves induced by various stimulations are recorded respectively. According to the response of the implant and the presence or absence and amplitude of the response wave, the quadrant contact electrode or the controlled electrode array group 3 is selected to discharge stimulation with low response threshold and / or good waveform differentiation, so as to optimize the sound hearing effect of the implant.

[0033] The artificial cochlea controlled electrode of the utility model stimulates the residual auditory nerve cells and / or fibers of the cochlea by four quadrant contact electrodes with different orientations in single or group discharge mode, and considers four directions, solves the problem of potential ineffective or inefficient stimulation caused by the fixed single-direction discharge of the existing artificial cochlea, and further optimizes the sound hearing effect of the implant.

[0034] Referring to Figure 7, further, the plurality of sub-control electrode array groups 3 are arranged on the length direction of the silicone body 2. Further, the silicone body 2 can be provided with 24 or 48 sub-control electrode array groups 3, of course, other number of sub-control electrode array groups 3 can be provided, which can be selected according to specific circumstances of the user, which will not be described here. See Figure 4 , L refers to the length of the electrode part of the sub-control electrode of the cochlear implant (the length between the flexible electrode head 1 and the first tapered ring 4), the size range is 15mm-31mm; P refers to the length between each sub-control electrode array group 3, the size range is 0.7mm-1.5mm.

[0035] In specific embodiments, when 24 sub-control electrode array groups 3 are provided, there are 96 quadrant contact electrodes, and L is about 22mm; when 48 sub-control electrode array groups 3 are provided, there are 192 quadrant contact electrodes, and L is about 30mm. Each stimulation electrode lead 10 is connected to a quadrant contact electrode, and through circuit control, each quadrant contact electrode can be stimulated separately or simultaneously.

[0036] The quadrant contact electrodes in different sub-control electrode array groups 3 can work independently, and different quadrant contact electrodes in different sub-control electrode array groups 3 can be selected according to the patient's condition to produce a variety of stimulation modes and improve the stimulation effect. See Figure 7 , the adjacent sub-control electrode array groups 3 form a stimulation loop, which can be called BP (Bipolar) stimulation mode (i.e. Figure 7 label 31 in the figure); the stimulation mode with one sub-control electrode array group 3 in the middle is BP+1 mode (i.e. Figure 7 label 32 in the figure), the stimulation mode with two sub-control electrode array groups 3 is BP+2 mode (i.e. Figure 7 label 33 in the figure), and so on, which will not be described here.

[0037] The cochlear implant sub-control electrode of the present application has more rich electric stimulation modes, in addition to monopolar directional stimulation and multipolar stimulation, it can also realize advanced focused stimulation, by using multiple quadrant contact electrodes or different sub-control electrode array groups 3 to work together to form a more concentrated electric field, so as to more accurately stimulate specific nerve fiber groups, and achieve further improvement of sound resolution ability and patient speech recognition ability.

[0038] See Figure 4 , specifically, the quadrant contact electrode can be an inner buckle shape, so that the quadrant contact electrode can be buckled in the silicone body 2 and is not easy to fall off.

[0039] See Figure 1 and Figure 8The sub-control electrode further comprises a first tapered ring 4 and a second tapered ring 5 arranged at the periphery of the silicone body 2, and the first tapered ring 4 and the second tapered ring 5 are arranged in sequence along the length direction of the silicone body 2. The first tapered ring 4 is closer to the flexible electrode head 1 than the second tapered ring 5, and the maximum cross-sectional radius of the first tapered ring 4 is smaller than that of the second tapered ring 5. Further, the interval of the first tapered ring 4 and the second tapered ring 5 can be 3mm-5mm, and the angle between the first tapered ring 4 and the second tapered ring 5 and the silicone body 2 can be 150 degrees-165 degrees. When the cochlear implant sub-control electrode is implanted, the first tapered ring 4 (with a diameter of 1.0mm-1.2mm) is completely implanted in the cochlea, indicating that all the sub-control electrode array groups 3 are implanted in the cochlea; the second tapered ring 5 (with a diameter of 1.2mm-1.7mm) is implanted in the cochlea, which prevents the lymphatic fluid from flowing out (similar to a sealing plug), and does not need to use the fascia to block the cochlea round window, so as to prevent the lymphatic fluid from leaking, reduce the cochlea infection, and reduce the electrode displacement and extrusion.

[0040] The cochlear implant sub-control electrode of the utility model stimulates the residual auditory nerve cells and / or fibers in the cochlea in a single or group discharge mode, solves the problem of potential ineffective or inefficient stimulation caused by the fixed unidirectional discharge of the existing cochlear implant, and further optimizes the sound hearing effect of the implantee.

[0041] Finally, it should be pointed out that the above preferred embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the utility model and are not limiting. Although the utility model has been described in detail through the above preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that various changes can be made in form and details without departing from the scope defined by the claims of the utility model.

Claims

1. A quadrant-controlled electrode for a cochlear implant, comprising a flexible electrode tip and a silicone body, the flexible electrode tip being located at one end of the silicone body, characterized in that, The array group of sub-control electrodes further comprises four quadrant contact electrodes, the four quadrant contact electrodes are arranged around the periphery of the silicon body, and the four quadrant contact electrodes are arranged in different directions.

2. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 1, wherein, Among the four quadrant contact electrodes, two non-adjacent quadrant contact electrodes are arranged on the two sides of the radial direction of the silicon body.

3. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 1, wherein, The silicon body is provided with a plurality of array groups of sub-control electrodes along the length direction of the silicon body.

4. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 3, wherein, The quadrant contact electrodes in different array groups of sub-control electrodes can work independently.

5. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 1, wherein, The first and second conical rings are arranged along the length direction of the silicon body.

6. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 5, wherein, The first conical ring is closer to the flexible electrode head than the second conical ring, and the maximum cross-sectional radius of the first conical ring is smaller than that of the second conical ring.

7. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 6, wherein, The quadrant contact electrodes are inner buckle-shaped.

8. The cochlear implant quadrant electrode of claim 3, wherein, The silicon body is provided with 24 or 48 array groups of sub-control electrodes.

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