Bettina Kronsteiner, Genova Carrero-Rojas, Lukas F Reissig, Atieh Seyedian Moghaddam, Karoline M Schwendt, Sylvia Gerges, Udo Maierhofer, Oskar C Aszmann, Angel M Pastor, Attila Kiss, Bruno K Podesser, Wolfgang Birkfellner, Francesco Moscato, Roland Blumer, Wolfgang J Weninger
BACKGROUND: Electrical stimulation of the vagus nerve (VN) is a therapy for epilepsy, obesity, depression, and heart diseases. However, whole nerve stimulation leads to side effects. We examined the neuroanatomy of the mid-cervical segment of the human VN and its superior cardiac branch to gain insight into the side effects of VN stimulation and aid in developing targeted stimulation strategies. METHODS: Nerve specimens were harvested from eight human body donors, then subjected to immunofluorescence and semiautomated quantification to determine the signature, quantity, and spatial distribution of different axonal categories...
April 25, 2024: Brain Stimulation