The key concepts for our discussion highlighted below. In acupuncture we are triggering nociceptive responses. In using certain acupuncture points, and in some instances vagal enhancement with TaVNS, we are taking advantage of these systems. A sort of “biohacking.” There
Report from the BBC on animal acupuncture. Great photos and information!
This article compares autonomic activity in headache patients. They make no distinction between headache and migraine. Though I’d expected as much, they found lower parasympathetic activity and higher sympathetic activity in headache patients. I do have one patient who has had
“Reduced parasympathetic activity with sympathetic predominance was found in migraine patients during the night period, most affected being migraine with aura patients.” Interesting to see. Some migraine patients I see, indeed, have a high baseline stress level. But not certainly
Bioelectronics Company That is Targeting Migraine Treatment Raises $6 Million July 4, 2017 – Israel-based medical device company Theranica Bio-electronics raised $6 million in Series A financing, which it will use on the regulatory process for its first product, an
This study looks at TaVNS (Transcutaneous Auricular Vagal Nerve Stimulation) versus sham in healthy males. This study shows that cardiac baroreceptivity improves with TaVNS, but not with sham. Also that Heart Rate and LF/HF decrease with TaVNS but not with
This study comes from Scandinavia and they are looking at the HRV response to venipuncture (blood drawing). This is of interest to me, because for over 2 years now, I’ve included the needling segment in my study of HRV wondering
This article takes an in depth look at the theoretical reasons to use tVNS for autism disorders. The recommended frequencies are here “A recent tVNS study in migraine patients showed that although both 1 and 25 Hz tVNS can improve
This study is looking at learning and memory improvement with auricular stimulation (estim) in animals. As the first sentence says, “Ear acupuncture enhances the secretion of acetylcholine, which has anti-inflammatory effects.” I’ve been using ear stim in the clinic as
As some of my patients know, I’ve been using tVNS, or transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation in some of my patients. I do it by stimulating the ear in the cymba concha region. Some patients have opted to take a device
