Patent ID: 8626302

Claim:
A method to alleviate pain, the method comprising: identifying a tissue region where pain is perceived including skeletal muscle innervated by a peripheral nerve and including a motor point, wherein identifying the tissue region includes locating the motor point by percutaneously placing a locating lead and applying the therapeutic electrical stimulation to the locating lead and adjusting the position of the locating lead until a muscle twitch is observed in the skeletal muscle and the motor point is located without any verbal feedback from the patient; placing at least one intramuscular lead having at least one electrode within the skeletal muscle in electrical proximity, the motor point, and applying therapeutic electrical stimulation to the at least one electrode according to predefined therapeutic electrical stimulation parameters to affect afferent and/or efferent nerve stimulation within the skeletal muscle and to provide the therapeutic electrical stimulation to the motor point to alleviate pain without any functional nerve stimulation involving the skeletal muscle.