Wireless implant stimulates nerves to reduce blood pressure

Led by Professor Mario Romero-Ortega at the University of Houston, the work involved integrating a sub-millimetre nerve stimulation circuit with a novel nerve attachment microchannel electrode. Once implanted, the device could be controlled externally, delivering deep peroneal nerve stimulation (DPNS).

Previous work by Romero-Ortega and colleagues had demonstrated how DPNS using a wired electrode could induce a dramatic reduction in blood pressure and associated renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA). The latest work, published in Frontiers in Neuroscience, has taken the nerve stimulation wireless and explored different stimulation approaches to maximise the reduction in hypertension. With the wireless implant, the Houston team demonstrated that systolic blood pressure can be lowered 10 per cent in one hour and 16 per cent in two hours.

“Our results indicate that DPNS consistently induces an immediate and reproducible arterial depressor effect in response to electrical stimulation of the deep peroneal nerve,” said Professor Romero-Ortega.  

Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is the number one cause of death in the US. Often referred to as the ‘silent killer’, it is linked to around half of all stroke and heart-related deaths. While pharmacological treatments are effective, blood pressure remains uncontrolled to some degree in 50–60 per cent of subjects.