Scientific article
OA Policy
English

Influence of systematic variations of the stimulation profile on responses evoked with a vestibular implant prototype in humans

Published inJournal of Neural Engineering, vol. 17, no. 3, 036027
Publication date2020
Abstract

Objective: To explore the impact of different electrical stimulation profiles in human recipients of the Geneva-Maastricht vestibular implant prototypes. Approach: Four implanted patients were recruited for this study. We investigated the relative efficacy of systematic variations of the electrical stimulus profile (phase duration, pulse rate, baseline level, modulation depth) in evoking vestibulo-ocular (eVOR) and perceptual responses. Main results: Shorter phase durations and, to a lesser extent, slower pulse rates allowed maximizing the electrical dynamic range available for eliciting a wider range of intensities of vestibular percepts. When each either phase duration or pulse rate was held constant, current modulation depth was the factor that had the most significant impact on peak velocity of the eVOR. Significance: Our results identified important parametric variations that influence the measured responses. Furthermore, we observed that not all vestibular pathways seem equally sensitive to the electrical stimulus when the electrodes are placed in the semicircular canals and monopolar stimulation is used. This opens the door to evaluating new stimulation strategies for a vestibular implant, and suggests the possibility of selectively activating one vestibular pathway or the other in order to optimize rehabilitation outcomes.

Keywords
  • Bilateral vestibular loss
  • Electrical stimulation
  • Neuroprosthesis
  • Perception
  • Vestibular function
  • Vestibular implant
  • Vestibulo-ocular reflex
Citation (ISO format)
CRETALLAZ, Céline et al. Influence of systematic variations of the stimulation profile on responses evoked with a vestibular implant prototype in humans. In: Journal of Neural Engineering, 2020, vol. 17, n° 3, p. 036027. doi: 10.1088/1741-2552/ab8342
Main files (2)
Article (Accepted version)
Article (Published version)
Identifiers
Journal ISSN1741-2560
371views
203downloads

Technical informations

Creation27/05/2020 15:01:00
First validation27/05/2020 15:01:00
Update15/03/2023 22:07:19
Status update15/03/2023 22:07:18
Last indexation31/10/2024 18:56:05
All rights reserved by Archive ouverte UNIGE and the University of GenevaunigeBlack