Multiple components with different properties were elicited in EEPs when the ON was stimulated by penetrating electrodes. Retinotopic and localized stimulation could be achieved with this stimulating approach.

Our study demonstrates that intraorbital optic nerve stimulation with different stimulus parameters by penetrating electrodes can evoke cortical responses with different properties. The short-duration symmetrical cathode-first biphasic pulses of current with low frequencies are more efficacious in eliciting electrophysiological responses in the visual cortex than other stimulating waveforms.

Use of TcES through the ERG-jet corneal electrode may preferentially activate peripheral retina. Revealing the hemodynamic changes in visual cortex occurred after electrical stimulation can contribute to comprehension of neurophysiological underpinnings underlying prosthetic vision. This study provided an objective foundation for optimizing parameters of TcES and would bring considerable benefits in the application of TcES for assessment and screening in patients.

In visual prosthesis research, electrically evoked potentials (EEPs) can be elicited by one or more biphasic current pulses delivered to the optic nerve (ON) through penetrating electrodes. Multi-channel EEPs recorded from the visual cortex usually contain large stimulus artifacts caused by instantaneous electrotonic current spread through the brain tissue. These stimulus artifacts contaminate the EEP waveform and often make subsequent analysis of the underlying neural responses difficult. This is particularly serious when investigating EEPs in response to electrical stimulation with long duration and multi-pulses. We applied independent component analysis (ICA) to remove these electrical stimulation-induced artifacts during the development of a visual prosthesis. Multi-channel signals were recorded from visual cortices of five rabbits in response to ON electrical stimulation with various stimulus parameters. ON action potentials were then blocked by lidocaine in order to acquire cortical potentials only including stimulus artifacts. Correlation analysis of reconstructed artifacts by ICA and artifacts recorded after blocking the ON indicates successful removal of artifacts from electrical stimulation by the ICA method. This technique has potential applications in studies designed to optimize the electrical stimulation parameters used by visual prostheses.

PURPOSE. Current steering is a neural stimulation strategy that uses simultaneous stimulation of adjacent electrodes to produce additional intermediate stimulation sites and thus improves spatial resolution. We investigated the feasibility of current steering using electrophysiological and computational methods after implanting paired penetrating electrodes into the rabbit's optic nerve (ON). METHODS.Penetrating electrodes at different interelectrode distances were implanted into the ON and electrically evoked cortical potentials (EEPs) in V1 recorded with a 6 3 8 array. The current thresholds, EEP amplitudes, and spatial distributions were analyzed during current steering. Computational simulation studies were performed based on finite element models to calculate the area and spatial distribution of recruited ON fibers using a current steering stimulation strategy. RESULTS.Threshold reduction and EEP amplitude enhancement were found with simultaneous stimulation of closely spaced electrode pairs. Spatially shifted cortical responses were achieved using current steering, whereas the amplitudes and spatial spreads of the responses were similar to that elicited by a single electrode. Computational simulations suggested that the centroid of the ON recruitment area could be modulated by current steering while the total recruitment area did not show any appreciable variability at a fixed current intensity.CONCLUSIONS. Current steering is a useful strategy to enhance the spatial resolution of an ON prosthesis without increasing the number of physical electrodes. This study provides useful information for optimizing the design of stimulation strategies with a penetrating ON prosthesis.