Method and apparatus for treating a patient with depression comprising continuously providing a therapy to treat the patient's depression. The therapy, in one embodiment, comprises stimulating a patient's vagus nerve for about 30 seconds at a current of about 0.75 mA followed by a cessation of vagus nerve stimulation of about 5 minutes. Further still, the therapy comprises a pulse width of about 500 mus and a frequency of about 20 Hz. In another embodiment, the therapy comprises stimulating a patient's vagus nerve for about 25.07 seconds at a current of about 0.85 mA followed by a cessation of vagus nerve stimulation of about 4.07 minutes. This latter therapy also comprises a pulse width of about 415.20 mus and a frequency of about 20.07 Hz.
Vagus nerve stimulation for treatment of depression with therapeutically beneficial parameter settings