US 11,938,348 B2
Neuromodulation techniques
Christopher Michael Puleo, Niskayuna, NY (US); and Victoria Eugenia Cotero, Troy, NY (US)
Assigned to GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Schenectady, NY (US)
Appl. No. 16/978,987
Filed by General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US)
PCT Filed Mar. 6, 2019, PCT No. PCT/US2019/021018
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Sep. 8, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/173518, PCT Pub. Date Sep. 12, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/641,050, filed on Mar. 9, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2020/0406066 A1, Dec. 31, 2020
Int. Cl. A61N 7/00 (2006.01); A61B 5/00 (2006.01); A61B 5/145 (2006.01)
CPC A61N 7/00 (2013.01) [A61B 5/14532 (2013.01); A61B 5/4836 (2013.01); A61N 2007/0026 (2013.01); A61N 2007/0052 (2013.01); A61N 2007/0073 (2013.01)] 17 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A modulation system comprising:
at least one energy application device, wherein the at least one energy application device is an ultrasound probe; and
a controller configured to:
focus the at least one energy application device on a first region of interest of a first tissue, the first tissue comprising a first plurality of axon terminals of respective neurons, one or more of the first plurality of axon terminals forming synapses between individual axon terminals and respective non-neuronal cells, wherein the first region of interest comprises a f first subset of the first plurality of axon terminals;
adjustably control the at least one energy application device to apply a first energy to the first region of interest to selectively modulate a first molecule of interest;
focus the at least one energy application device on a second region of interest, wherein the second region of interest comprises a second plurality of axon terminals;
adjustably control the at least one energy application device to apply a second energy to the second region of interest to selectively modulate the first molecule of interest or a second molecule of interest
cause the ultrasound probe to operate in an imaging mode configured to acquire reference image data of the first tissue and/or a second tissue before the application of the first energy or the second energy and post-treatment image data of the first tissue and/or the second tissue after the application of the first energy or the second energy; and
determine a displacement measurement of the first tissue and/or the second tissue based on a comparison of the reference image data and the post-treatment image data;
modify a modulation parameter of the first energy or the second energy based on the displacement measurement being below a threshold displacement associated with a concentration change of the first molecule.