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Updated: Sep 16, 2026
Implantation and Control of Wireless, Battery-free Systems for Peripheral Nerve Interfacing
Published on: October 20, 2021
An implantable wireless battery-free spatially selective vagus nerve stimulator
Edvards Rutkovskis1, Enrico Ravagli2, Henry T Lancashire3
1Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, University College London, Malet Place Engineering Building - Gower Street - London, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Objective:
Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) is an established clinical therapy for drug-resistant epilepsy and other inflammatory conditions. However, off-target stimulation can produce unwanted side effects that limit therapeutic stimulation and hinder the development of new neuromodulation therapies. Selective VNS (sVNS) offers a strategy to reduce off-target organ activation; however, this approach is not available in humans, and no implantable or portable devices exist to trial sVNS in the clinical setup. This work aimed to design, manufacture, and validate an implantable wireless, battery-free stimulator with a selectively addressable output stage for targeted current delivery to specific regions of the human vagus nerve (VN).
Approach:
We developed a near-field communication-controlled, wirelessly powered, battery-free, temporary implantable multichannel stimulation device, compatible with a 15-channel sVNS cuff electrode (14 selective electrode pairs and one circumferential whole-nerve channel). The device was encapsulated for short-term implantation and evaluated through benchtop characterisation, accelerated ageing, and validation in an acute porcine and a pilot human study.
Main Result:
The sVNS device was evaluated in a porcine (n = 4) trial and a first-in-human pilot study (n = 1). Selective bradycardia of 23.28 ± 12.91% was observed in pigs and 7.5% in the human participant. In the human, a clear separation of bradycardic and tachycardic effects was observed, with additional selectivity in laryngeal activity. Cardiac and laryngeal responses were separated by 231° around the circumference of the nerve.
Significance:
This work demonstrates the feasibility of wireless battery-free sVNS for cardiac applications using a temporary implantable device. Geometrically selective stimulation has the potential to improve therapeutic efficacy while reducing stimulation-related side effects, and may facilitate future therapies for heart failure and other autonomic disorders.
