Several different embodiments of a flexible polymer battery are disclosed
in connection with providing a medical therapy. For example, the
electrical current from the polymer battery may be used to energize light
sources for administering light therapy. In one embodiment, the polymer
battery is formed as a substantially elongate structure having one end
attached to an internal receiver coil, and the other end attached to a
medical device such as a light probe that is adapted to be implanted
within a patient's body. The polymer battery thus provides a conductive
link between the internal receiver coil, which is electromagnetically
coupled to an external transmitter coil for recharging the battery, and
the light probe which is energized with current supplied by the flexible
polymer battery. In another embodiment, the polymer battery is used to
support a substrate on which a plurality of light sources are mounted in
spaced-apart array. Yet other forms of the invention include polymer
batteries within capsules or bead to energize light sources contained
therein. The beads include receiver coils for recharging the polymer
battery. Further, because of their small size, the beads or capsules are
readily moved or held at a treatment site with an external magnet while
therapy is rendered. Since a polymer battery includes very little metal,
it is less likely to cause artifacts when the patient's body is imaged.