You are viewing a javascript disabled version of the site. Please enable Javascript for this site to function properly.
Go to headerGo to navigationGo to searchGo to contentsGo to footer
In content section. Select this link to jump to navigation

Simulation of injury potential compensation by direct current stimulation in rat spinal cord

Issue title: Frontiers in Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology – Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Biomedical Engineering and Biotechnology, 25–28 September 2014, Beijing, China

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Wang, Aihua | Zhang, Guanghao | Zhang, Cheng | Wu, Changzhe | Song, Tao | Huo, Xiaolin;

Affiliations: Beijing Key Laboratory of Bioelectromagnetism, Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 6 Beiertiao, Zhongguancun, Haidian district, Beijing 100190, China

Note: [] Corresponding author: Xiaolin Huo, Beijing Key Laboratory of Bioelectromagnetism, Institute of Electrical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 6 Beiertiao, Zhongguancun, Haidian district, Beijing 100190, China. Tel.: 86-10-82547242; Fax: 86-10-82547242; E-mail: huoxl@ mail.iee.ac.cn.

Keywords: Direct current stimulation, finite element model, spinal cord injury, electric fields

DOI: 10.3233/BME-141197

Journal: Bio-Medical Materials and Engineering, vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 3693-3700, 2014

Published: 2014
Get PDF open access

Abstract

Injury potential, a significant index of spinal cord injury (SCI), is generated by the movement of extracellular ions. It can be compensated through applied direct current (DC) stimulation, which prevents the influx of the free calcium, and eventually reduces the development of secondary injury. Therefore, the compensation of injury potential is beneficial to the repairing of the function of spinal cord. The compensation effect can be evaluated by whether the magnitudes of longitudinal electric fields (EFs) are compensated to zero. However, there have been no established criteria to determine the distribution and shape of stimulating electrodes. In this study, in order to optimize the stimulating electrodes, a finite element model (FEM) of rat spinal cord was developed, and the EFs changes induced by electrodes of different sizes, shapes and locations after SCI were calculated. All the designed configurations of electrodes were able to compensate injury potential, but the resultant compensation effects vary. Pin and disc electrodes produced uneven EFs, while ring electrodes produced uniformly distributed EFs. Moreover, large ring electrodes can compensate the longitudinal EFs almost to zero with relatively low current density (0.55 μA/mm2) applied. These results provide a basis for the determination of electrical stimulation parameters in the compensation of injury potential.

Show more