A Dual-Mode Multifunctional Pulsed Radio-Frequency Stimulator for Trigeminal Neuralgia Relief and its Animal Model.

This work proposed a programmable pulsed radio-frequency (PRF) stimulator for trigeminal neuralgia (TN) relief on demand. The implantable stimulator is a miniaturized micro-system which integrates a wireless interface circuit, a sensor interface circuit, a PRF pattern generation circuit and a logic controller. The multifunctional stimulator capable of delivering current/voltage stimulation provides the choice of the biphasic sinusoidal, square and patterned waveform for PRF treatment researches.

Two Transcutaneous Stimulation Techniques in Shoulder Pain: Transcutaneous Pulsed Radiofrequency (TPRF) versus Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS): A Comparative Pilot Study.

Objective: To compare the safety and efficacy of 2 transcutaneous stimulation techniques, transcutaneous pulsed radiofrequency (TPRF) versus transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), in chronic shoulder tendonitis.

Design: A prospective, randomized, and double-blind clinical trial.

Setting: Academic pain service of a city hospital.

Pulsed radiofrequency stimulation suppresses palmar hyperhidrosis in an animal study.

Objectives: Palmar hyperhidrosis (PH) exhibits excessive and unpredictable sweating. The most effective treatment for permanent cure is the ablation of thoracic sympathetic ganglia innervating hands. However, sympathectomy of T2 sympathetic ganglion by clipping or cauterization causes irreversible nerve damage, and results in a compensatory hyperhidrosis (CH).

Clinical Effects of Laser Acupuncture plus Chinese Cupping on the Pain and Plasma Cortisol Levels in Patients with Chronic Nonspecific Lower Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objectives: Chronic nonspecific lower back pain (LBP) is a common disease. Insufficient data is currently available to conclusively confirm the analgesic effects of laser acupuncture on LBP. This study evaluated the effectiveness of laser acupuncture plus Chinese cupping in LBP treatment.

A dual-mode highly efficient class-E stimulator controlled by a low-Q class-E power amplifier through duty cycle.

This paper presents the design flow of two high-efficiency class-E amplifiers for the implantable electrical stimulation system. The implantable stimulator is a high-Q class-E driver that delivers a sine-wave pulsed radiofrequency (PRF) stimulation, which was verified to have a superior efficacy in pain relief to a square wave. The proposed duty-cycle-controlled class-E PRF driver designed with a high-Q factor has two operational modes that are able to achieve 100% DC-AC conversion, and involves only one switched series inductor and an unchanged parallel capacitor.

In situ measurement of tissue impedance using an inductive coupling interface circuit.

In this work, a method of an inductive coupling impedance measurement (ICIM) is proposed for measuring the nerve impedance of a dorsal root ganglion (DRG) under PRF stimulation. ICIM provides a contactless interface for measuring the reflected impedance by an impedance analyzer with a low excitation voltage of 7 mV. The paper develops a calibration procedure involving a 50-Ω reference resistor to calibrate the reflected resistance for measuring resistance of the nerve in the test.

Evaluation of the effect of laser acupuncture and cupping with ryodoraku and visual analog scale on low back pain.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of laser acupuncture (LA) and soft cupping on low back pain. In this study, the subjects were randomly assigned to two groups: active group (real LA and soft cupping) and placebo group (sham laser and soft cupping). Visual analog scale (VAS) and Ryodoraku were used to evaluate the effect of treatment on low back pain in this trial.

A miniature patient-mount navigation system for assisting needle placement in CT-guided intervention.

Background: CT-guided intervention is routinely performed in an iterative fashion that often leads to lengthy operation and high X-ray exposure to patients. To streamline the workflow, we develop a patient-mount navigation system for assisting needle placement in CT-guided interventions.

Methods: The system comprises three components, a miniature patient-mount tracking unit, an auto-registered reference-frame unit and an intuitive image-processing unit.

A comparison between pulsed radiofrequency and electro-acupuncture for relieving pain in patients with chronic low back pain.

Many treatment options for chronic low back pain are available, including varied forms of electric stimulation. But little is known about the electricity effect between electro-acupuncture and pulsed radiofrequency. The objective of this study is to assess the difference in effectiveness of pain relief between pulsed radiofrequency and electro-acupuncture.

Pain Control on Demand Based on Pulsed Radio-Frequency Stimulation of the Dorsal Root Ganglion Using a Batteryless Implantable CMOS SoC.

This paper presents the implementation of a batteryless CMOS SoC with low voltage pulsed radio-frequency (PRF) stimulation. This implantable SoC uses 402 MHz command signals following the medical implanted communication system (MICS) standard and a low frequency (1 MHz) for RF power transmission. A body floating type rectifier achieves 84% voltage conversion ratio.

A patient-mount navigated intervention system for spinal diseases and its clinical trial on percutaneous pulsed radiofrequency stimulation of dorsal root ganglion.

Study Design: Development of a patient-mount navigated intervention (PaMNI) system for spinal diseases. An in vivo clinical human trial was conducted to validate this system.

Objective: To verify the feasibility of the PaMNI system with the clinical trial on percutaneous pulsed radiofrequency stimulation of dorsal root ganglion (PRF-DRG).

The development and evaluation of the Citizen Telehealth Care service System: case study in Taipei.

Because of the rapid aging population in Taiwan and the trend of fewer children, people are looking into technical solutions for continuous/intermittent monitoring of vital signs in the home setting environment and the interactions between family members. In this study we developed a smart medical services system for managing chronic disease, called Citizen Telemedical Care service System (CTCS). The system integrates biosignal measurement, hypertension risk estimation expert system, clinic appointment service, video communication service, medical assistance referral, health frequency program record, and health/hygiene education.

Chemical profiling and gene expression profiling during the manufacturing process of Taiwan oolong tea "Oriental Beauty".

Oriental Beauty, which is made from tea leaves infested by the tea green leafhopper (Jacobiasca formosana) in Taiwan, has a unique aroma like ripe fruits and honey. To determine what occurs in the tea leaves during the oolong tea manufacturing process, the gene expression profiles and the chemical profiles were investigated. Tea samples were prepared from Camellia sinensis var.