43 results about "Feeding disability" patented technology

Systems and methods for introducing one or more stimulating drugs and / or applying electrical stimulation to the brain to at least treat or prevent obesity and / or other eating disorders uses at least one system control unit (SCU) producing electrical pulses delivered via electrodes implanted in the brain and / or producing drug infusion pulses, wherein the stimulating drug(s) are delivered to targeted areas in the brain.

A method and apparatus for treatment of an eating disorder includes electrically, mechanically and / or pharmaceutically / chemically stimulating a of the vagus nerve of the lower esophagus, cardia, esophageal / cardia junction, cardia / fundus junction or upper stomach so as to induce afferent action potentials on the vagus nerve. The device may be noninvasively adjusted after implantation to provide increased or decreased restriction on the patient's gastrointestinal tract. Each stimulus may be administered as a series of programmed pulses of defined amplitude, duration and period, to evoke a responsive signal to the brain by the target nerve, effective for producing a temporary feeling of satiety in the person. An implantable stimulus generator may be operatively coupled to a nerve electrode, pressure device or chemical outlet to apply a defined signal to a selected nerve branch. The implantable stimulus generator is programmable to allow clinician programming of defined signal parameters effective to treat the eating disorder of the patient. Methods are also provided to identify electrodes nearest to a branch of the vagus nerve to apply an electrical stimulation signal with improved efficiency.

Feedback systems and methods communicate implanted sensor-based feedback signals to promote behavior modifications that ameliorate obesity and other eating disorders. The system and methods described may also be applicable to any treatment in which presenting feedback regarding patients' eating and exercise habits is desired. The present invention provides a method and system for treating a patient by collecting ingestion and exercise information about the patient from an implanted sensor and communicating the collected information to the patient, his or her physician and / or other health care providers. In some embodiments, stimulation of the patient's stomach is also provided to reduce caloric intake. In some embodiments, the collected data is transmitted to a central server. Further embodiments may provide access to additional information in conjunction with the collected patient information, such as a calorie database, an exercise planner, and so forth, with the data optionally being used within a social networking system.

Systems and methods are provided for modulating the autonomic nervous system by the electrical stimulation of the neuro-muscular system of a patient, and include an implantable electrical system for gastrointestinal stimulation which incorporates a heart rate sensor to indicate the neurovegetative patient condition, to initiate and terminate stimulation at specific locations, and an algorithm to automatically control electrical stimulation frequency, interval, amplitude, or a combination of such parameters for adaptive treatment of obesity, anorexia, other eating disorders, diseases related with the so called “metabolic syndrome” (e.g., impaired glucose tolerance and diabetes type 2, GERD, systemic hypertension, early arterovascular degeneration, early senility, and the like), and disorders related to a pathologic imbalance of the autonomic nervous system.

Methods and systems of treating a patient having an eating disorder involving coupling at least one electrode to at least one cranial nerve of the patient, implanting a sensory stimulation device in the patient, applying a sensory stimulus to the patient using the sensory stimulation device, detecting the patient's response to the sensory stimulus, and applying an electrical signal to the cranial nerve using the electrode after detecting the response to treat the eating disorder. The methods and systems are effective in treating bulimia.