A system and method that provide a prophylactic treatment to a person,
e.g., a patient, to avoid the occurrence of pulmonary embolisms by the
system providing neuromuscular stimulation to a person's lower
extremities, e.g., the person's legs, when the system senses that a
person has been immobile for an extended period of time. An implantable
neuromuscular pacer, such as that described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,193,539;
5,193,540; 6,164,284; 6,185,452; 6,208,894; 6,315,721; 6,564,807; and
their progeny, may be used to provide to selectively provide such
stimulation. Preferably, such a device may be battery powered so that it
can operate independent of an external apparatus. In particular, systems
and devices of the present invention preferably additionally include an
activity monitor, e.g., an accelerometer or the like, that disables or
limits stimulation to pronged time periods in which there is limited
activity.