Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Heart Failure

It is a non-invasive transcutaneous electrical stimulation of the auricular branch of the vagus nerve which innervates the skin of the human ear. These nerve fibers project directly to the solitary tract nucleus (NTS) in the brain stem (6).

Sham stimulation is obtained by placing the stimulation electrode at the level of the earlobe. The stimulation is therefore administered and perceived in an area not innervated by vagal fibers.