A neural stimulator

Abstract

The application discloses a nerve stimulator, wherein the nerve stimulator comprises a flexible electrode, a connecting structure and an output structure; the flexible electrode comprises a base body, a plurality of drug delivery microneedles, a plurality of electrode contacts and a plurality of hot compress electrodes, wherein the plurality of drug delivery microneedles, the plurality of electrode contacts and the plurality of hot compress electrodes are arranged on the base body in an array manner; one end of the connecting structure is connected with the flexible electrode, the connecting structure comprises micro flow channels and lead wires which are arranged side by side; the other end of the connecting structure is connected with the output structure; the output structure outputs pulse signals; and a slow-release medicine bag is arranged in the output structure. The nerve stimulator provided by the application has the basic electric pulse stimulation function, can perform hot compress on a local pathological site of a spine through the heating electrode, and can relieve pain caused by the pathological site; and nutrient nerve drugs or treatment drugs can be delivered to the pathological site of the spine through the micro flow channels, so that physiotherapy and treatment of the pathological site are achieved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of spinal cord nerve electrode, in particular to a nerve stimulator. BACKGROUND

[0002] The current spinal cord nerve stimulation electrode structure is a whole flexible structure design, and multi-functional electrodes and microneedles and other structures are processed on the surface of a flexible substrate. The structure is implanted into a specific part (segment) of the spinal cord through a surgical invasive operation, and then an electric signal is applied to the contact of the electrode array to stimulate the nerves of the fixed part to achieve the function of restoring the movement function of the organism.

[0003] The spinal cord nerve stimulator electrode adopts a whole flexible structure, and the electrode is designed for individual customization on the flexible substrate, has the function of applying electric stimulation to help patients with limb movement dysfunction to improve the functional conditions, but the function is relatively single, and the patients with mild spinal lesions and acute lumbar disc protrusion have not achieved the function of treatment. SUMMARY

[0004] The main purpose of the present application is to provide a nerve stimulator, which aims to solve the problem of single function of the existing nerve stimulator.

[0005] To achieve the above purpose, the present application provides a nerve stimulator, which comprises:

[0006] A flexible electrode, the flexible electrode comprises a base body, a plurality of drug micro-needles, a plurality of electrode contacts and a plurality of hot compress electrodes, wherein the plurality of drug micro-needles, the plurality of electrode contacts and the plurality of hot compress electrodes are arranged in an array on the base body;

[0007] A connecting structure, one end of the connecting structure is connected with the flexible electrode, the connecting structure comprises a micro-channel and a lead wire arranged side by side; and

[0008] An output structure, the other end of the connecting structure is connected with the output structure, the output structure outputs a pulse signal, and a slow-release medicine bag is arranged in the output structure.

[0009] Preferably, the plurality of drug micro-needles are hollow structures.

[0010] Preferably, the length of the plurality of drug micro-needles is 1mm-10mm.

[0011] Preferably, the number of the plurality of drug micro-needles is 1-100.

[0012] Preferably, the number of the plurality of electrode contacts is 1-200.

[0013] Preferably, the number of the plurality of hot compress electrodes is 1-400.

[0014] Preferably, the connecting structure is provided as a length-adjustable structure.

[0015] Preferably, the nerve stimulator further comprises a fixing hole provided on the other side of the base.

[0016] Preferably, the base is provided as a polyhedral shape, and edges of the polyhedral are provided as smooth.

[0017] Preferably, the base has a thickness of 2mm to 20mm.

[0018] The nerve stimulator provided by the technical scheme has the basic electric pulse stimulation function, and can also perform hot compress on the local lesion part of the spine through the heating electrode to relieve the pain caused by the lesion. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical scheme in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art description will be briefly introduced. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor based on the drawings shown.

[0020] Figure 1 Fig. 1 is a structural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the nerve stimulator of the present application;

[0021] Figure 2 Fig. 2 is a partial enlarged view of A in Fig. 1; Figure 1

[0022] Figure 3 Fig. 3 is a working state diagram of the nerve stimulator of the present application.

[0023] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] Reference Name Reference Name 100 Nerve stimulator 14 Hot pack electrode 1 Flexible electrode 2 Connection structure 11 Base body 21 Micro flow channel 12 Drug micro-needle 22 Lead wire 13 Electrode contact 3 Output structure

[0025] The implementation, functional features and advantages of the present application will be further described with reference to the embodiments and the drawings. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] ​Clearly and completely, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described in combination with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0027] It should be noted that all directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.) in the embodiments of the present application are only used to explain the relative positional relationship, movement condition, etc. between components in a certain posture (as shown in the drawings), and if the certain posture changes, the directional indications also change accordingly.

[0028] In addition, the description of "first", "second" and the like in the present application is only for the purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying the relative importance of the indicated technical features or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first", "second" can explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In addition, the technical solutions of each embodiment can be combined with each other, but it must be based on the realization of those of ordinary skill in the art, and when the combination of technical solutions contradicts each other or cannot be realized, it should be considered that the combination of technical solutions does not exist, and is not within the scope of protection required by the present application.

[0029] The spinal cord nerve stimulator electrode adopts a whole flexible structure, and the electrode is designed for individual customization on a flexible substrate, has the function of applying electric stimulation to help patients with limb movement dysfunction to improve the functional conditions, but the function is relatively single, and the patients with mild spinal lesion and acute lumbar disc protrusion have not realized the treatment function.

[0030] Therefore, the present application provides a nerve stimulator with multiple functions, which has the functions of electric stimulation, local hot compress treatment and drug treatment of inflammation. Figures 1 to 3 , Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the nerve stimulator of the present application. Figure 2 It is a structural schematic diagram of an embodiment of the nerve stimulator of the present application. Figure 1 It is a local enlarged view of A in the figure. Figure 3 It is a working state diagram of the nerve stimulator of the present application. The nerve stimulator will be described in combination with the drawings.

[0031] The present application provides a nerve stimulator 100, as shown in Figure 1As shown, the nerve stimulator 100 comprises a flexible electrode 1, a connecting structure 2, and an output structure 3, the flexible electrode 1 comprises a base body 11, a plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12, a plurality of electrode contacts 13 and a plurality of hot compress electrodes 14, wherein the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12, the plurality of electrode contacts 13 and the plurality of hot compress electrodes 14 are arranged in an array on the base body 11; one end of the connecting structure 2 is connected with the flexible electrode 1, the connecting structure 2 comprises a microchannel 21 and a lead 22 arranged side by side; the other end of the connecting structure 2 is connected with the output structure 3, the output structure 3 outputs a pulse signal, and a slow-release medicine bag is arranged in the output structure 3.

[0032] The nerve stimulator 100 provided by the technical scheme of the present application realizes the integrity of the motor nerve pathway by stimulating the nerves of the relevant area in the form of electric pulse through the electrode contacts 13, so that the damaged limb nerves can receive the electric signal to realize the recovery of the motor function, and the local lesion site of the spine (for example, C1-C7 cervical vertebra segment, T1-T12 thoracic vertebra segment, L1-L5 lumbar vertebra segment) can be hot compressed by the heating electrode to achieve the purpose of relieving the pain caused by the lesion; the drug delivery microneedles 12 are made on the base body 11, and the nutrient nerve medicine or the treatment medicine is transported to the spine lesion site through the microchannel 21 to achieve the purposes of physiotherapy and treatment of the lesion.

[0033] It should be noted that the flexible electrode 1 of the present application is a MEMS electrode, first, the flexible electrode 1 for the individual is customized after the orientation of the nerve root corresponding to the limb movement is determined by modeling the spine of the individual. The overall processing technology of the electrode adopts sputtering of a metal sacrificial layer on the surface of a silicon wafer, then a flexible substrate is processed by a spin-coating material and solidification process, metal traces and electrode contacts 13 are magnetron sputtered and patterned, and a flexible material is deposited as an electrical isolation layer.

[0034] Preferably, the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12 are hollow structures, for the manufacture of the drug delivery microneedles 12, the flexible hollow drug delivery microneedles 12 are processed by drawing, inverse molding and other processes, or the hollow microneedles of metal material can be assembled on the flexible substrate, by making the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12 hollow structures, the slow-release medicine bag in the output structure 3 can be transmitted to the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12 through the microchannel 21, and then the drug delivery microneedles 12 are in contact with the patient, so that the medicine is accurately delivered to the lesion site of the patient, achieving the purpose of treatment.

[0035] Further, in the embodiment, the length of the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12 is 1-10 mm, preferably 1-5 mm, and more preferably 2 mm. The drug delivery microneedles 12 are vertically arranged on the substrate 11, and the material of the drug delivery microneedles 12 is metal such as stainless steel, carbon steel, platinum-iridium alloy, or silicon material, methyl methacrylate resin, PC, PVME, or the like.

[0036] In order to enable the drug delivery microneedles 12 to quickly deliver drugs to the patient, further, the number of the plurality of drug delivery microneedles 12 is 1-100, which can be 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, or 100. The size of the flexible electrode 1 is designed according to the lesion site of the patient, and then the specific number and arrangement of the drug delivery microneedles 12 on the flexible electrode 1 are set according to the drug delivery requirement. This setting can better combine the patient's condition to achieve the drug delivery requirement.

[0037] Preferably, the number of the plurality of electrode contacts 13 is 1-200, which can be 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, or 100. The plurality of electrode contacts 13 are arranged in an array manner, for example, two columns and four rows, four columns and five rows, or the like, on the flexible electrode 1. By arranging the plurality of electrode contacts 13, the pulse signals transmitted by the output structure 3 can be uniformly distributed on the lesion site of the patient, thereby improving the treatment efficiency.

[0038] Further, please refer to Figure 2 The number of the plurality of hot compress electrodes 14 is 1-400, which can be 5, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, or 100. The plurality of hot compress electrodes 14 are arranged in an array manner, for example, two columns and four rows, four columns and five rows, or the like, on the flexible electrode 1. By arranging the plurality of hot compress electrodes 14, the pulse signals transmitted by the output structure 3 can be uniformly distributed on the lesion site of the patient, thereby improving the treatment efficiency.

[0039] In the embodiment, preferably, the connection structure 2 is a structure with a telescopic length. The connection structure 2 includes a micro channel 21 and a lead 22, so that the micro channel 21 and the lead 22 can be stretched. The telescopic connection structure 2 can be connected to nerves with different sizes and distributions, so that the flexible electrode 1 can be better connected to the nerve site. The micro channel 21 and the lead 22 are electrically isolated from each other by an insulating material to prevent short circuit.

[0040] In order to make the nerve stimulator 100 convenient to attach to the body part, the nerve stimulator 100 further comprises a fixing hole, one side of the base body 11 is provided with a plurality of drug micro-needles 12, a plurality of electrode contacts 13 and a plurality of hot compress electrodes 14, and the fixing hole is arranged on the other side of the base body 11. Correspondingly, the nerve stimulator 100 further comprises a fixing device, and the fixing hole cooperates with the fixing device to be fixed. The design of the fixing hole can make the flexible electrode of the nerve stimulator attach to the dorsal root of the nerve, and be fixed in the spinal canal and the surface of the spinal cord through a surgical line, so that more firm binding can be achieved.

[0041] In the embodiment, the base body 11 is provided in a polyhedral shape, preferably a cuboid shape. The edges of the polyhedron are provided in a smooth manner. This arrangement can facilitate the array arrangement of the plurality of drug micro-needles 12, the plurality of electrode contacts 13 and the plurality of hot compress electrodes 14 on the base body 11, and is beneficial to the attachment to the dorsal root of the nerve. Further, the thickness of the base body 11 is 2mm-20mm. By controlling the thickness of the base body 11 within a certain range, the base body 11 can not only realize the transmission of electrical signals, but also can not interfere with and damage the body.

[0042] The technical solutions of the present application are described below in combination with the functions of the components. The technical solutions comprise four functional modules: (1) battery and circuit processing system; (2) pulse signal transmission lead; (3) drug micro-channel; (4) flexible electrode array. Figure 1 Figure 3 As shown in the figure, the battery and circuit processing system is mainly arranged in the output structure 3, which can supply power, store energy, filter, emit stimulating electrical pulses, and drugs can also be integrated in this structure. The release of drugs can be realized by means including but not limited to electric control; the pulse signal transmission lead and the drug micro-channel are arranged in the connecting structure 2, which can transmit the electrical pulse signals emitted by the battery and circuit processing system to the flexible electrode 1 through the pulse signal transmission lead, and transmit the drugs to the flexible electrode 1 through the drug micro-channel, and the flexible electrode array directly contacts the nerve part.

[0043] The flexible electrode 1 is made by MEMS processing technology, and is mechanically assembled with the rear-end connecting structure 2 and the output structure 3 after being completed. The flexible electrode 1 is implanted into the relevant lesion site through surgery, and the implantation process needs to be performed under the condition of local anesthesia and mild sedation. The stimulator is implanted in the lower abdomen or the iliac region through surgery, and the implantation of the flexible electrode 1 needs to be placed through surgical laminectomy. After being activated, the output structure 3 is controlled by the transcutaneous remote control technology to stimulate the specific region with electric pulses, replace the interrupted nerve transmission path, and realize the improvement or even recovery of the limb and other physiological activities. The hot compress electrode 14 can be attached to the spinal lesion site to relieve the pain caused by the lumbar disc herniation and the spinal trauma, and improve the physical condition of the patient. The drug micro-needle 12 is designed to be hollow, and the anti-inflammatory analgesic and nerve nutrition drugs are delivered to the lesion site through the micro-channel 21, or the drugs are coated on the surface of the micro-needle needle tip to be released at the lesion site of the spine, so as to achieve the treatment purpose. During the electrode placement and test, the patient must be in a clear state to facilitate the test, and the duration is several hours, several days or even several weeks.

[0044] The above only describes the preferred embodiments of the present application, and does not limit the patent scope of the present application. Any equivalent structural transformation made according to the content of the present application specification and drawings, or direct / indirect application in other related technical fields under the inventive concept of the present application is included in the patent protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A neurostimulator, comprising: The utility model relates to a nerve stimulator, including: A flexible electrode, the flexible electrode includes a substrate, a plurality of drug micro-needles, a plurality of electrode contacts and a plurality of hot compress electrodes, wherein the plurality of drug micro-needles, the plurality of electrode contacts and the plurality of hot compress electrodes are arranged in an array on the substrate; A connecting structure, one end of the connecting structure is connected with the flexible electrode, the connecting structure includes microfluid channel and lead wire arranged side by side, and An output structure, the other end of the connecting structure is connected with the output structure, the output structure outputs pulse signal, and the output structure is provided with sustained-release medicine bag inside; The plurality of drug micro-needles are hollow structures, the sustained-release medicine bag in the output structure is transmitted to the plurality of drug micro-needles through the microfluid channel, then contacts the patient through the drug micro-needle, and the drug is accurately delivered to the lesion site of the patient, and the pulse signal transmitted by the output structure is uniformly distributed on the lesion site of the patient by arranging the plurality of electrode contacts.

2. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein, The length of the plurality of drug micro-needles is 1mm-10mm.

3. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The number of the plurality of drug micro-needles is 1-100.

4. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The number of the plurality of electrode contacts is 1-200.

5. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The number of the plurality of hot compress electrodes is 1-400.

6. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The connecting structure is provided as a length-adjustable structure.

7. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The nerve stimulator further includes a fixing hole arranged on the other side of the substrate.

8. The neurostimulator of claim 1, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The substrate is provided as a polyhedral shape, and the edges of the polyhedron are smoothly arranged.

9. The neurostimulator of claim 8, wherein the at least one electrode is configured to stimulate the vagus nerve. The thickness of the substrate is 2mm-20mm.

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