Inductively Coupled Electrical Stimulation - Part I: Overview and First Observations

Abstract

Inductively Coupled Electrical Stimulation (abbreviated ICES) is a reliable, effective, non-invasive, pain-free, low cost, low-power and energy efficient method to apply micro-, nano-, and pico-ampere electrical stimulation to deep tissues. The design intent of ICES is to use magnetic pulses of a specific trapezoidal waveform to induce micro-, nano-, and pico-currents in tissues by electromagnetic induction rather than electrical conduction. Induction allows electromagnetic energy to pass through dry, intact, non-conductive garments, bandages, and tissues such as skin, to reach deep tissues and lesions with much higher energetic efficiency and volumetric uniformity than is possible using conductive energy transfer through the skin, thus conferring many advantages over conduction-based technologies such as TENS and micro-current stimulation devices. This is the first in a series of reports identifying the key electromagnetic parameters for inductively coupled electrical stimulation to yield consistent and reliable biological results. Details of the experimental PEMF apparatus used in the initial NASA studies, published in 2003 are reported, and for the first time the electro-magnetic methods are reported, analyzed in detail, and the observed biological effects of different waveform shapes are reported. To correct the omissions in the original NASA publication, the visible biological response observations are included, with the identification of the key electromagnetic parameters that were found to yield significant and repeatable biological effects. This paper is submitted in conjunction with a Letter to the Editor of this journal, which attempts to explain the reasons for the confusion and controversy surrounding PEMF research, and why it has proven so difficult to make scientific progress in the study of the effects of these apparently non-harmful, non-invasive electro-magnetic pulses on biological systems. The work reported in this paper is a first attempt to correct past errors and omissions, in line with the suggestions proposed in the Letter to the Editor.