WO2022226902A1

WO2022226902A1 - Nerve myelin sheath stimulation device and method

Info

Publication number: WO2022226902A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/091041
Authority: WO
Inventors: 郑海荣; 周慧; 牛丽丽; 孟龙; 夏向向; 庞娜
Original assignee: 深圳先进技术研究院
Priority date: 2021-04-29
Filing date: 2021-04-29
Publication date: 2022-11-03

Abstract

A nerve myelin sheath stimulation device and method. The nerve myelin sheath stimulation device comprises: an input interface (10), a signal control circuit (20), and an ultrasonic wave generation unit (30). The input interface (10) is used for obtaining input parameters; the signal control circuit (20) is connected to the input interface (10) to generate a control electric signal on the basis of the input parameters; and the ultrasonic wave generation unit (30) is connected to the signal control circuit (20) to generate and emit ultrasonic waves to act on the designated position of the brain on the basis of the control electric signal, so as to stimulate the nerve myelin sheath at the designated position of the brain to promote regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath. By means of the method, myelin sheath regeneration can be promoted in a noninvasive mode.

Description

A kind of nerve myelin stimulation device and method thereof

technical field

The present application relates to the field of neuromodulation, and in particular, to a nerve myelin stimulation device and a method thereof.

Background technique

Neurons are the basic unit to maintain brain function activities, and are divided into two parts: cell body and process. The cell body of a neuron is composed of nucleus, cell membrane, and cytoplasm; there are two types of processes: dendrites and axons. The myelin sheath wraps the axon, and its main function is to protect the neuron and enable the nerve impulse to be transmitted quickly on the neuron. The loss of myelin can affect the transmission of nerve impulses, which in turn affects normal brain activity. In the long-term research and development process, the inventors of the present application found that it is of great significance to intervene in the early stage of myelin sheath in order to promote the regeneration of myelin sheath.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The main technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide a nerve myelin stimulation device and a method thereof, which can promote myelin regeneration without trauma.

In order to solve the above technical problems, a technical solution adopted in the present application is to provide a nerve myelin stimulation device, the nerve myelin stimulation device includes: an input interface, a signal control circuit and an ultrasonic wave generating unit. The input interface is used to obtain input parameters; the signal control circuit is connected to the input interface to generate control electrical signals based on the input parameters; the ultrasonic generation unit is connected to the signal control circuit to generate and transmit ultrasonic waves based on the control electrical signals to act on the specified location of the brain, thereby affecting The nerve myelin sheaths in designated locations in the brain are stimulated to promote the regeneration of nerve myelin sheaths.

Wherein, the ultrasonic generating unit includes: ultrasonic generator, ultrasonic transducer and several probes. Wherein, the ultrasonic generator is connected to the signal control circuit to generate a high-frequency oscillating electrical signal based on the control electrical signal; the ultrasonic transducer is connected to the ultrasonic generator to convert the oscillating mechanical wave based on the high-frequency oscillating electrical signal to generate ultrasonic waves; several probes are connected to ultrasonic waves A transducer is also used to place on the head to send ultrasound waves to a specific location in the brain.

The signal control circuit is further configured to adjust the control electrical signal based on the input parameters, so as to control the ultrasonic parameters of the ultrasonic waves generated by the ultrasonic wave generating unit.

The control electrical signal is a pulse electrical signal.

The pulse electrical signal is an envelope signal.

The ultrasonic parameters include: ultrasonic intensity, pulse interval time or pulse duration.

Among them, the ultrasonic transducer includes a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer or a piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer

Wherein, the transducing material in the ultrasonic transducer includes: at least one of piezoelectric material, composite piezoelectric material, or single crystal piezoelectric material.

In order to solve the above technical problem, another technical solution adopted in the present application is to provide a nerve myelin stimulation method, comprising: acquiring input parameters; generating control electrical signals based on the input parameters; The brain specifies the location, thereby stimulating the nerve myelin at the specified location in the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin.

Among them, generating and transmitting ultrasonic waves based on the control electrical signals to act on the specified location of the brain, including: generating high-frequency oscillating electrical signals based on the control electrical signals; converting the high-frequency oscillating electrical signals into oscillating mechanical waves to generate ultrasonic waves; sending ultrasonic waves to The brain specifies the location.

The beneficial effects of the present application are: different from the situation in the prior art, the present application provides a nerve myelin stimulation device, the nerve myelin stimulation device includes: an input interface, a signal control circuit and an ultrasonic wave generating unit. The ultrasonic wave generating unit is connected to the signal control circuit to generate and transmit ultrasonic waves to act on a designated position of the brain based on the control electrical signal, thereby stimulating the nerve myelin sheath at the designated position of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath. This application uses the ultrasonic generation unit to apply ultrasonic waves at the designated part of the brain. The ultrasonic waves enter the brain through the skull and interact with the meningeal lymphatic vessels and neuronal cells, which can reduce the level of inflammation in the brain, promote lymphatic circulation, and then promote the regeneration of myelin sheaths. Restores the electrical signaling function of damaged nerve fibers. The use of non-invasive physical stimulation to promote myelin regeneration can effectively relieve and treat demyelinating diseases, and at the same time, it can avoid surgical treatment or drug treatment.

Description of drawings

1 is a schematic structural diagram of a nerve myelin stimulation device according to an embodiment of the present application;

2 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic waveform according to an embodiment of the present application;

3 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic generation unit according to an embodiment of the present application;

4 is a schematic flowchart of a nerve myelin stimulation method according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of a device with a storage function according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and effects of the present application clearer and clearer, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and examples.

The pathological change in demyelinating diseases is the loss of myelin sheath on the axons of nerve cells, while the nerve cells remain relatively intact. The main symptoms of demyelinating disease include visual disturbances, muscle weakness, spasms, numbness, and cognitive impairment. Demyelinating diseases include, but are not limited to, multiple sclerosis (MS), Devic's Disease, inflammatory demyelinating diseases, or leukodystrophy. Acute demyelinating disease is characterized by the rapid regeneration of myelin after shedding. Although the regenerated myelin sheath is thin, it generally has little effect on functional recovery. In chronic demyelinating diseases, there are symptoms of repeated shedding of myelin sheaths, which can lead to thickening of nerves and incomplete recovery of nerve function due to axonal loss. At present, the main way to treat demyelinating diseases is drug therapy, but with the aggravation of the disease, the dose of drugs increases, which will lead to a series of side effects and negatively affect the health of the human body.

In order to solve the above technical problems, the present application provides a nerve myelin stimulation device, the nerve myelin stimulation device includes an input interface, a signal control circuit and an ultrasonic generation unit. Among them, the ultrasonic generating unit can generate and emit ultrasonic waves to act on the designated position of the brain, and stimulate the nerve myelin sheath in the designated position of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath. Non-invasive stimulation of nerves by means of physical stimulation to promote nerve remyelination. Details are described below.

Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a schematic structural diagram of a nerve myelin stimulation device according to an embodiment of the present application. The nerve myelin stimulation device includes an input interface 10 , a signal control circuit 20 and an ultrasonic wave generating unit 30 .

The input interface 10 is used to obtain input parameters. A user or operator can input input parameters for controlling the signal control circuit 20 on the input interface 10 . The input interface 10 may be a panel including several buttons or any interface that allows the user to input parameters, such as a touch screen. In addition, the user can also input input parameters on the input interface 10 through other devices. For example, the user can also use a keyboard, a mouse, or an electronic pen to perform input on the input interface 10 . The input parameters may be parameters determined according to the actual situation of the user.

The signal control circuit 20 is used to connect the input interface 10 to generate control electrical signals based on the input parameters. The signal control circuit 20 can acquire input parameters from the input interface 10, and generate corresponding control electrical signals according to the input parameters, so that the ultrasonic waves generated by using the control electrical signals can satisfy the input parameters.

The ultrasonic wave generating unit 30 is connected to the signal control circuit 20 to generate and transmit ultrasonic waves to act on a designated position of the brain based on the control electrical signal, thereby stimulating the nerve myelin sheath at the designated position of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath. Ultrasound is a kind of mechanical wave, which can propagate in the medium, and has the characteristics of high frequency, short wavelength, no serious diffraction, and good directionality.

In the present application, the ultrasonic generation unit 30 is used to apply ultrasonic waves at the designated part of the brain. The ultrasonic waves enter the brain through the skull and interact with the meningeal lymphatic vessels and neuronal cells, which can reduce the level of inflammation in the brain, promote lymphatic circulation, and further promote the regeneration of myelin sheaths. , restores the electrical signaling function of damaged nerve fibers. The use of non-invasive physical stimulation to promote myelin regeneration can effectively relieve and treat demyelinating diseases, and at the same time, it can avoid surgical treatment or drug treatment.

In one embodiment, the signal control circuit 20 is further configured to adjust the control electrical signal based on the input parameters, so as to control the ultrasonic parameters of the ultrasonic waves generated by the ultrasonic wave generating unit 30 . In one embodiment, the control electrical signal is a pulse electrical signal. A pulsed electrical signal is an intermittent electrical signal of short duration. The pulsed electrical signal is determined based on input parameters. Input parameters include, but are not limited to, signal strength, pulse interval time or pulse duration, etc. Each pulse electrical signal also includes a plurality of mutually spaced sub-pulse electrical signals. As shown in FIG. 2 , FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a pulsed electrical signal according to an embodiment of the present application. A single pulse includes several sub-pulses, as shown in Figure 2. Wherein, a is a schematic waveform of a plurality of pulse electrical signals, and b is a schematic waveform of several sub-pulse electrical signals included in a single pulse electrical signal. Input parameters can also include sub-pulse interval time or sub-pulse duration, etc.

The signal control circuit 20 also includes other components capable of adjusting the control electrical signal based on input parameters. For example, the signal control circuit 20 includes a matlab model. The nerve myelin stimulation device can use the matlab model to adjust the waveform of the pulsed electrical signal. In one embodiment, the control signal is an envelope signal. That is, the adjusted pulse electrical signal is an envelope signal, so that the amplitude of the ultrasonic waves can be adjusted and the accumulation of ultrasonic energy can be reduced. The accumulation of ultrasonic energy will increase the temperature of the local area where the ultrasonic wave is applied to the user, causing tissue damage. Reducing the accumulation of ultrasonic power can avoid the temperature increase of the user's tissues and organs caused by the accumulation of ultrasonic energy, and prevent the user from being burned. The original pulsed electrical signal is a pulsed signal oscillating with equal amplitude. After adjustment, the amplitude of each oscillation of the pulse signal will change. Connect the highest point and the lowest point of each pulse signal with connecting lines, the shape of the connecting line is the envelope of the pulse signal, and the adjusted pulse electrical signal is the envelope signal. The specific waveform of the envelope signal is shown in Figure 2.

The signal control circuit 20 may also include a signal transmission circuit, a power amplifier circuit, an electronic phase control circuit or an impedance matching circuit, and the like.

Referring to FIG. 3 , FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic generating unit according to an embodiment of the present application. The ultrasonic generating unit 30 includes an ultrasonic generator 310 , an ultrasonic transducer 320 and several probes 330 .

The ultrasonic generator 310 is connected to the signal control circuit 20 to generate a high-frequency oscillating electrical signal based on the control electrical signal. The high-frequency oscillating electrical signal is an envelope signal.

The ultrasonic transducer 320 is connected to the ultrasonic generator 310 to convert into an oscillating mechanical wave based on a high-frequency oscillating electrical signal, thereby generating ultrasonic waves. After receiving the high-frequency oscillating electrical signal, the ultrasonic transducer 320 will generate an inverse piezoelectric effect, thereby generating ultrasonic waves. In view of this, ultrasonic parameters can be controlled by adjusting the high-frequency oscillating electrical signal. In one embodiment, the ultrasonic parameters include: ultrasonic intensity, pulse interval time or pulse duration. Ultrasonic intensity refers to the maximum value of ultrasonic energy intensity within a unit pulse. The pulse interval time refers to the time interval between two adjacent pulses. Pulse duration refers to the duration of a single pulse. In addition, the ultrasound parameters may also include the total duration. Total duration refers to the total duration of ultrasound during a nerve myelin stimulation. After the total duration is reached, the continuous application of ultrasonic stimulation to the user is stopped.

Ultrasonic transducer 320 may be any suitable type of ultrasonic transducer. The ultrasonic transducer 320 includes, but is not limited to, a linear array, a ring array, an arcuate array, a planar array, or a flexible ultrasonic transducer. Optionally, the ultrasonic transducer 320 includes a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer or a piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer. Among them, capacitive Micro-machined Ultrasonic Transducer (cMUT) is an ultrasonic transducer manufactured based on MEMS technology. The diaphragm in the cMUT relies on electrostatic attraction to propel the transducer that generates the ultrasound. cMUT has the advantages of high-density array element integrated manufacturing, good impedance matching between silicon material and human body medium, high sensitivity, wide frequency band, and high electromechanical conversion efficiency. Piezoelectric Micro-machined Ultrasonic Transducer (pMUT) is also an ultrasonic transducer manufactured based on MEMS technology, which generates ultrasonic waves by a built-in piezoelectric film. The pMUT has the advantages of high frequency, excellent impedance matching, and easy formation of arrays.

The transducer material in the ultrasonic transducer can be any suitable ultrasonic transducer material. In one embodiment, the transducing material in the ultrasonic transducer includes at least one of piezoelectric material, composite piezoelectric material, or single crystal piezoelectric material. The piezoelectric material refers to an inorganic piezoelectric ceramic or an organic piezoelectric material or the like. Inorganic piezoelectric ceramics include, but are not limited to, barium titanate, lead zirconate titanate, modified lead zirconate titanate, lead metaniobate, lead barium lithium niobate or modified lead titanate, and the like. Organic piezoelectric materials include organic materials such as polyvinylidene fluoride. The composite piezoelectric material refers to a composite polymer piezoelectric material, which is prepared from a high molecular polymer and an inorganic piezoelectric material in a certain proportion. Single crystal piezoelectric materials include, but are not limited to, quartz crystal, lithium gallate, lithium germanate, titanium germanate, iron transistor lithium niobate or lithium tantalate, and the like.

A number of probes 330 are connected to the ultrasonic transducer 320 and are used to be placed on the head to transmit ultrasonic waves to a designated location in the brain. The designated location of the brain can be determined according to the user's specific location of myelin loss. The probe 330 can be secured at a designated location on the user's head in a variety of ways. The specific number of the probes 330 can be determined according to the actual needs of the user in the process of use.

The ultrasonic generating unit 30 further includes a fixing component (not shown) for fixing the probe 330 at a designated position of the user's head. The fixing component may be a helmet-like fixing bracket, or it may be a flexible fixing material such as a hat, hood, hood or scarf.

Different from the prior art, the present application also provides a nerve myelin stimulation method. Please refer to FIG. 4 , which is a schematic flowchart of a method for stimulating nerve myelin according to an embodiment of the present application. It should be noted that, if there is substantially the same result, the method of the present application is not limited to the sequence of the processes shown in FIG. 4 . As shown in Figure 4, the method includes the following steps:

Step 410: Obtain input parameters.

Step 420: Generate a control electrical signal based on the input parameter.

The control electrical signal is adjusted based on the input parameters, thereby controlling the ultrasonic parameters of the generated ultrasonic waves. In one embodiment, the control signal is a pulsed electrical signal. In one embodiment, the control signal is an envelope signal. In one embodiment, the ultrasonic parameters include: ultrasonic intensity, pulse interval time or pulse duration.

Step 430 : based on the control electrical signal, generate and emit ultrasonic waves to act on the designated position of the brain, so as to stimulate the nerve myelin in the designated position of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin.

Specifically, generating and generating ultrasonic waves based on the control electrical signals includes the following steps: generating high-frequency oscillating electrical signals based on the control electrical signals; converting the high-frequency oscillating electrical signals into oscillating mechanical waves to generate ultrasonic waves; sending the ultrasonic waves to a designated location in the brain . Specifically, couplant or deionized water can be used for ultrasonic conduction.

Please refer to FIG. 5 , which is a schematic structural diagram of a device with a storage function according to an embodiment of the present application. The device 500 with a storage function according to the embodiment of the present application stores program data, which can be read by a computer, and the program data can be executed by a processor, so as to realize any embodiment of the nerve myelin stimulation method of the present application and any non-conflicting combination provided method. Wherein, the program data can be stored in the above-mentioned device with a storage function in the form of a program file in the form of a software product, so that a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) or a processor (processor) executes All or part of the steps of the methods of various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned device 500 with a storage function includes: a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM, Read-Only Memory), a random access memory (RAM, Random Access Memory), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc. The medium of program code, or terminal equipment such as computers, servers, mobile phones, and tablets.

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus and method may be implemented in other manners. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are only illustrative. For example, the division of units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, for example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated. to another system, or some features can be ignored, or not implemented. On the other hand, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, and may be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically alone, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated units may be implemented in the form of hardware, or may be implemented in the form of software functional units.

The above description is only an embodiment of the present application, and is not intended to limit the scope of the patent of the present application. Any equivalent structure or equivalent process transformation made by using the contents of the description and drawings of the present application, or directly or indirectly applied to other related technologies Fields are similarly included within the scope of patent protection of this application.

Claims

A nerve myelin stimulation device, comprising:

Input interface, used to obtain input parameters;

a signal control circuit connected to the input interface to generate a control electrical signal based on the input parameter;

An ultrasonic wave generating unit is connected to the signal control circuit to generate and transmit ultrasonic waves based on the control electrical signal to act on a designated position of the brain, so as to stimulate the nerve myelin sheath at the designated position of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath .
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic wave generating unit comprises:

an ultrasonic generator connected to the signal control circuit to generate a high-frequency oscillating electrical signal based on the control electrical signal;

an ultrasonic transducer connected to the ultrasonic generator to convert the high-frequency oscillating electrical signal into an oscillating mechanical wave, thereby generating ultrasonic waves;

A number of probes are connected to the ultrasound transducer and are used to be placed on the head to transmit the ultrasound to a designated location in the brain.
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 1, wherein the signal control circuit is further configured to adjust the control electrical signal based on an input parameter, so as to control the ultrasonic wave of the ultrasonic wave generated by the ultrasonic wave generating unit parameter.
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 3, wherein the control electrical signal is a pulse electrical signal.
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 4, wherein the pulsed electrical signal is an envelope signal.
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 3, wherein the ultrasonic parameters include: ultrasonic intensity, pulse interval time or pulse duration.
nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 2, is characterized in that, described ultrasonic transducer comprises capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer or piezoelectric micromachined ultrasonic transducer
The nerve myelin stimulation device according to claim 2, wherein the transducer material in the ultrasonic transducer comprises: at least one of piezoelectric material, composite piezoelectric material, or single crystal piezoelectric material .
A method for stimulating nerve myelin, comprising:

get input parameters;

generating a control electrical signal based on the input parameter;

Based on the control electrical signal, ultrasonic waves are generated and emitted to act on a designated location of the brain, so as to stimulate the nerve myelin sheath at the designated location of the brain to promote the regeneration of the nerve myelin sheath.
The nerve myelin stimulation method according to claim 9, wherein the generating and transmitting ultrasonic waves based on the control electrical signal to act on a designated position of the brain, comprising:

generating a high-frequency oscillating electrical signal based on the control electrical signal;

Based on the high-frequency oscillating electrical signal is converted into oscillating mechanical waves, thereby generating ultrasonic waves;

The ultrasound is sent to the designated location in the brain.