Apparatus and method for treating a patient using vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli and/or thermal stimuli

Abstract

The invention relates to a device ( 100 ) for treating a patient with vibration and/or tactile and/or thermal stimuli ( 20 ), said device ( 100 ) containing a first and second stimulating unit ( 11, 12 ) for generating first and second stimuli respectively. The stimuli are vibration and/or tactile and/or thermal stimuli, and each of the stimuli is repeated on average at a frequency of 1 to 60 Hz. The stimuli are generated at at least partly different times.

1 - 21 . (canceled) 
     
     
         22 . An apparatus for treating a patient using at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli, comprising:
 N stimulation units configured to generate stimuli, wherein:   the stimuli are at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli,   the stimulation units each generate the stimuli periodically at a frequency f stim  in a range of 1 to 60 Hz,   the stimuli generated by different stimulation units are generated with a time offset, and   the time offset between two mutually following stimuli amounts on average to 1/(f stim ×N).   
     
     
         23 . An apparatus in accordance with  claim 22 , wherein the stimulation units are skin stimulation units. 
     
     
         24 . An apparatus for treating a patient using at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli, comprising:
 a first stimulation unit configured to administer first stimuli to the skin of a patient; and
 a second stimulation unit configured to administer second stimuli to the skin of the patient, 
 wherein: 
 the first and second stimuli are each at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli, 
 the first stimuli are forwarded, on a reception via receptors of the patient, to a first subpopulation of a population of neurons which have a pathologically synchronous and oscillatory activity, and the first stimuli have an effect that the phase of the neuronal activity of the first subpopulation is reset, 
 the second stimuli are forwarded, on a reception via receptors of the patient, to a second subpopulation of the population of neurons which have the pathologically synchronous and oscillatory activity, and the second stimuli have an effect that the phase of the neuronal activity of the second subpopulation is reset, and 
 the first and second stimuli are generated at least partly at different times. 
   
     
     
         25 . An apparatus in accordance with  claim 24 , wherein the first and second stimuli are each repeated on average at a frequency f stim  from 1 to 60 Hz during a stimulation period. 
     
     
         26 . A method of treating a patient using at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli, the method comprising:
 administering first stimuli to the skin of a patient, wherein the first stimuli are received by receptors, the receptors forward the first stimuli to a first subpopulation of a population of neurons which have a pathologically synchronous and oscillatory activity, and the first stimuli have an effect that the phase of the neuronal activity of the first subpopulation is reset; and   administering second stimuli to the skin of the patient, wherein the second stimuli are received by receptors, the receptors forward the second stimuli to a second subpopulation of a population of neurons which have the pathologically synchronous and oscillatory activity, and the second stimuli have an effect that the phase of the neuronal activity of the second subpopulation is reset,   wherein the first and second stimuli are each at least one of vibration stimuli, tactile stimuli, and thermal stimuli, and   wherein the first and second stimuli are generated at least partly at different times.   
     
     
         27 . A method in accordance with  claim 26 , wherein the first and second stimuli are each repeated at a frequency f stim  on average from 1 to 60 Hz during a stimulation period. 
     
     
         28 . A method in accordance with  claim 26 , wherein the vibration stimuli are periodic stimuli having a frequency in a range from 30 to 300 Hz. 
     
     
         29 . A method in accordance with  claim 26 , wherein a stimulation element vibrates at an amplitude up to 0.5 mm on a vibration stimulus. 
     
     
         30 . A method in accordance with  claim 26 , wherein a temperature in a range from 22° C. to 42° C. is generated on the surface of the patient's skin on a thermal stimulus.