Transcutaneous trigeminal nerve stimulation to treat motion sickness

1 . A method of treating motion sickness in a patient, comprising:

coupling at least one electrode to the patient at least one location in proximity to at least one cranial nerve; and

applying an electrical signal to said cranial nerve using said electrode to treat said motion sickness.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the cranial nerve is selected from the group consisting of the trigeminal nerve and a trigeminal nerve branch.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the trigeminal nerve branch is selected from the group consisting of the infraorbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the buccal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the mental branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supra-orbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the infratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the external nasal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the auriculotemporal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the zygomaticofacial branch of the trigeminal nerve, and the palpebral branch of the trigeminal nerve.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein treating said motion sickness comprises treating motion sickness induced by at least one of automobile travel, boat travel, aircraft travel, and spacecraft travel.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising the steps of:

providing a programmable electrical signal generator;

coupling said signal generator said at least one electrode;

generating an electrical signal with the electrical signal generator; and

applying the electrical signal to the electrode.

6 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising programming the electrical signal generator to define the electrical signal by at least one parameter selected from the group consisting of a current magnitude, a pulse frequency, a pulse width, a pulse period, an on-time and an off-time, wherein said at least one parameter is selected to treat the motion sickness.

7 . The method of claim 6 , wherein said at least one parameter is characterized by a value that varies randomly within a defined range from pulse to pulse.

8 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising detecting a symptom of the motion sickness, and wherein applying the electrical signal is initiated in response to detecting said symptom.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein detecting the symptom is performed by the patient.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying the electrical signal comprises applying said signal to the nerve branch using said at least one electrode during a first treatment period, and said method further comprises applying a second electrical signal to the nerve branch using said at least one electrode during a second treatment period, to treat the motion sickness.

11 . A method of treating motion sickness in a patient, comprising:

coupling a first electrode to the skin of the patient at a first location in proximity to at least a first cranial nerve; and

coupling a second electrode to the skin of the patient at a second location in proximity to at least a second cranial nerve; and

applying a first electrical signal to said first cranial nerve using said first electrode during a first time period and applying a second electrical signal to said second cranial nerve using said second electrode during a second time period to treat said motion sickness.

12 . The method of claim 11 , wherein the first and second cranial nerve are selected from the group consisting of the infraorbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the buccal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the mental branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supra-orbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the infratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the external nasal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the auriculotemporal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the zygomaticofacial branch of the trigeminal nerve, and the palpebral branch of the trigeminal nerve.

13 . The method of claim 11 , wherein said at least a first nerve branch and said at least a second nerve branch comprise the same nerve branch.

14 . A method of treating motion sickness in a patient, comprising:

receiving a signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient; and

providing an electrical signal to an electrode coupled to the patient at least one location in proximity to at least one cranial nerve to treat said motion sickness in response to said signal.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the cranial nerve is selected from the group consisting of the infraorbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the buccal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the mental branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supra-orbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the infratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the external nasal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the auriculotemporal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the zygomaticofacial branch of the trigeminal nerve, and the palpebral branch of the trigeminal nerve

16 . The method of claim 14 , wherein receiving a signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient comprises using a sensor to receive said signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient.

17 . The method of claim 14 , wherein receiving a signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient comprises receiving said signal from a source external to the patient's body.

18 . A medical device for treating motion sickness in a patient, comprising:

an interface for receiving a signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient;

an electrode coupled to the patient at least one location in proximity to at least one cranial nerve, and

a controller for providing an electrical signal to said electrode to treat said motion sickness based upon said signal.

19 . The medical device of claim 18 , wherein the electrode is coupled to a cranial nerve branch selected from the group consisting of the infraorbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the buccal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the mental branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the supra-orbital branch of the trigeminal nerve, the infratrochlear branch of the trigeminal nerve, the external nasal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the auriculotemporal branch of the trigeminal nerve, the zygomaticofacial branch of the trigeminal nerve, and the palpebral branch of the trigeminal nerve

20 . The medical device of claim 18 , further comprising a sensor to sense a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient and provide said signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient.

21 . The medical device of claim 18 , wherein said signal indicative of a symptom of the motion sickness in said patient is provided by a source external to the patient's body.

22 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

coupling a drug delivery device in direct or indirect fluid communication with the patient's bloodstream; and

applying a drug to said bloodstream using said drug delivery device to treat said motion sickness.

23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the drug is selected from the group consisting of promethazine, dimenhydrinate, diphenhydramine, meclizine, cyclizine, diazepam, and scopolamine.