Abbott Eterna vs Boston Scientific WaveWriter Alpha

Posted by vincescs @vincescs, Jan 26, 2023

Hi. I am interested in feedback from patients who have either of these devices implanted. I currently have a Medtronic Intellis implanted for my neck and it works great. Now I need an additional spinal cord stimulator for my back, and the technologies available to me are Abbott and Boston Scientific.

I would prefer the Boston Scientific unit since I could then use one battery to power the leads in both my neck and back. However, I am being told that WaveWriter Alpha will require very frequent charging if using two sets of leads - perhaps daily. Eterna requires infrequent charging - perhaps monthly - but would require two batteries, one for my neck and one for my back.

Thanks in advance for any feedback from users with either of these devices.

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Spine Health Support Group.

Jennifer, Volunteer Mentor | @jenniferhunter | Jan 27, 2023

@vincescs I just wanted to say welcome to Connect. I am a spine surgery patient, but I don't have any pain management devices. I do see you've found another discussion where you my find some members with information.

Perhaps this discussion may have some relevant information.

- Neuropathy - Anyone tried Spinal Cord Stimulation for Chronic Pain?
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/spinal-cord-stimulation-2/

vincescs | @vincescs | Mar 4, 2023

I'll answer my own question here. FDA approved Abbott's Eterna in December of 2022, but I didn't know until the end of my lumbar spinal cord stimulator trial last month that Abbott didn't launch sales and implants of the new device until February 14 (Happy Valentine's Day lol). I guess that's why nobody has any experience to share on this topic.

In any event, I agreed with my doctor's recommendation to go with implantation of the Eterna system in mid-March. The charging burden for the WaveWriter Alpha when powering two sets of leads is just too high based on the experience of his patients.

I've seen the Eterna battery in person now, and it's quite small. Even smaller than my Intellis battery. Hopefully the small battery size and low charging maintenance will outweigh the downside of having two batteries implanted.