This application is generally related to systems and methods for providing a medical therapy to a patient by tracking patient activity and adjusting medical therapy based on occurrence of different types of activities performed by the patient while automatically balancing stimulation program duration.

An implantable medical device is configured determine a numerical value of a variable that is monitored by the implantable medical device and convert the numerical value to a data sequence of modulated electrical stimulation rate intervals. The implantable medical device delivers electrical stimulation pulses according to the data sequence of modulated stimulation rate intervals to cause a modulated rate of activation of excitable tissue of a patient corresponding to the modulated stimulation rate intervals. The modulated rate of activation is detectable by a rate monitor for demodulation to the numerical value of the monitored variable data value. In some examples, the implantable medical device is a pacemaker delivering cardiac pacing pulses according to modulated pacing rate intervals to cause a modulated heart rate of the patient detectable by a heart rate monitor for demodulation to the numerical value of the monitored variable.

An electronics and antenna assembly is disclosed for use with a medical implant.

An implantable device is provided, comprising: a substrate; an integrated circuit attached to the substrate; and an ultrasonic transducer configured to receive ultrasonic waves that power the integrated circuit, wherein the ultrasonic transducer is attached to the substrate via one or more electrodes, and wherein the total electrode surface area in contact with the ultrasonic transducer is smaller than the surface area of a face of the ultrasonic transducer to which the one or more electrodes are attached. For example, the ultrasonic transducer may be a cubic piezoelectric crystal, and the electrodes may be positioned at the edges of a face of the cubic piezoelectric crystal, at the center of a face of the cubic piezoelectric crystal, or at the corners of a face of the piezoelectric crystal.

The disclosed techniques allow for externalizing errors from an implantable medical device using the device's charging coil, for receipt at an external charger or other external device. Transmission of errors in this manner is particularly useful when telemetry of error codes through a traditional telemetry coil in the implant is not possible, for example, because the error experienced is so fundamental as to preclude use of such traditional means. By externalizing the error via the charging coil, and though the use of robust error modulation circuitry in the implant designed to be generally insensitive to fundamental errors, the external charger can be consulted to understand the failure mode involved, and to take appropriate action.

Synchronized stimulation of cardiac tissue can be implemented by implanting two or more rectifier-based AM receivers into different positions within a subject's heart. Each receiver is tuned to a different frequency, and generates an output signal that is capable of stimulating cardiac tissue when a signal at the corresponding tuned frequency arrives at the receiver. An AM transmitter can activate any given one of the receivers by transmitting a signal into the subject's body at the proper frequency. A controller controls the transmitter by commanding the transmitter to transmit pulses of AC at different frequencies at different times, so that when those pulses are received by the correspondingly-tuned receivers, each of the receivers will generate respective output signals that stimulate respective parts of the heart at respective times to promote improved cardiac performance.

A method for determining usable capacity of a battery of an active implantable medical device comprising a radiofrequency (RF) communication unit for transmitting data by RF over a communication period, wherein the usable capacity of the battery enables the active implantable medical device to transmit data by RF via the RF communication unit. The method includes measuring a value for the voltage of the battery which is representative of an instantaneous voltage drop of the battery as a result of a current draw on the battery, comparing the voltage of the battery with a predetermined threshold voltage VBS, and transmitting an alert message to a second device when the measured voltage of the battery crosses the predetermined threshold voltage.

A system and method for extracting a cardiac signal from a spinal signal include measuring a spinal signal at one or more electrodes that are connected to a neurostimulator and implanted within a patient's spinal canal and processing the spinal signal to extract the cardiac signal, which includes features that are representative of the patient's cardiac activity. Processing the spinal signal to extract the cardiac signal can include filtering the spinal signal, or use of model reduction schemes such as independent component analysis. The extracted cardiac signal can include a number of features that correspond to an electrocardiogram and can be used to determine the patient's heart rate and/or to detect a cardiac anomaly. Cardiac features that are determined from the cardiac signal can additionally be used to adjust parameters of the stimulation that is provided by the neurostimulator.

Systems and methods for managing communication strategies between implanted medical devices. Methods include temporal optimization relative to one or more identified conditions in the body. A selected characteristic, such as a signal representative or linked to a biological function, is assessed to determine its likely impact on communication capabilities, and one or more communication strategies may be developed to optimize intra-body communication.

An interface or communications system for a neural probe, the interface or communications system comprising at least one probe interface, an optical communications interface and a processing system. The at least one probe interface is configured to interface with at least one neural probe so as to receive data collected by the probe. The processing system is configured to process the data from the at least one probe interface and provide the processed data to the optical communications interface. The optical communications interface is configured to communicate the processed data to a remote device, e.g. using optical wireless communications. The optical communications interface has the large bandwidth available that will allow the scaling up of recording sites from the neural probe without resulting in undue size, weight and/or power consumption.