Design, fabrication and evaluation of a conforming circumpolar peripheral nerve cuff electrode for acute experimental use

Abstract

Nerve cuff electrodes are a principle tool of basic and applied electro-neurophysiology studies and are championed for their ability to achieve good nerve recruitment with low thresholds. We describe the design and method of fabrication for a novel circumpolar peripheral nerve electrode for acute experimental use. This cylindrical cuff-style electrode provides approximately 270 degrees of radial electrode contact with a nerve for each of an arbitrary number of contacts, has a profile that allows for simple placement and removal in an acute nerve preparation, and is designed for adjustment of the cylindrical diameter to ensure a close fit on the nerve. For each electrode, the electrical contacts were cut from 25 µm platinum foil as an array so as to maintain their positions relative to each other within the cuff. Lead wires were welded to each intended contact. The structure was then molded in silicone elastomer, after which the individual contacts were electrically isolated. The final electrode was curved into a cylindrical shape with an inner diameter corresponding to that of the intended target nerve. The positions of these contacts were well maintained during the molding and shaping process and failure rates during fabrication due to contact displacements were very low. Established electrochemical measurements were made on one electrode to confirm expected behavior for a platinum electrode and to measure the electrode impedance to applied voltages at different frequencies. These electrodes have been successfully used for nerve stimulation, recording, and conduction block in a number of different acute animal experiments by several investigators.

Characterization of high capacitance electrodes for the application of direct current electrical nerve block

“…Monopolar J-cuff electrodes were fabricated using platinum foil with a platinum wire welded to the contact surface [17]. The platinum wire was a few cm in length and was welded to a stainless steel lead for connection to the instrumentation.…”

“…This configuration provided a durable lead for connectivity (stainless steel) while keeping the dissimilar metal junction (platinum to stainless steel) away from the tissue. The foil and lead wire were encapsulated in silicone elastomer, and a window was cut on the contact surface to create an interface with the nerve [17]. Rectangular windows were cut to one of three sizes: 3 × 1 mm, 3 × 2 mm or 3 × 3 mm.…”

“…The two stimulating electrodes [proximal stimulation (PS) and distal stimulation (DS)] were used to test the efficacy of the nerve block and the integrity of nerve conduction. The stimulating electrodes were bipolar J-cuff electrodes and are described in detail in [17]. The stimulating electrodes were connected to a Grass S88 stimulator (Grass Technologies, West Warwick, RI, USA) with a current-controlled output.…”

Regenerative engineering and bionic limbs

“…A neural electrode placed surrounding the nerve is able to record and also stimulate the nerve (Fig. 3) [53–55]. Such conductive electrodes include the nerve cuff and the flat-interface nerve electrodes.…”

Use of High Surface Area Electrodes for Safe Delivery of Direct Current for Nerve Conduction Block

“…Monopolar nerve cuff electrodes were manufactured using platinum foil (10). These electrodes were then platinized in chloroplatinic acid solutions to create platinum black coatings of various roughness factors from 50 to over 600.…”