We investigated the effects of pulsed magnetic fields (PMF) stimulus on electroencephalogram (EEG) alpha activity and heart rate variability (HRV) from electrocardiogram (ECG) measurements with various stimulus durations at acupoint PC9. The alpha activity in the EEG and the ratio of low frequency power and high frequency power (LHR) in the HRV, a reflection of sympathovagal activity, were increased and decreased, respectively, after PMF stimulus of 3 min. Our spectral analysis quantitatively proved that the changes in the EEG alpha activity were consistent with an autonomic function in the ECG. These findings suggest that appropriate PMF stimulus results in the same effect as that of acupuncture applied to the acupoint PC9, which is closely related to the parasympathetic activity of the autonomic nervous system.

This study explored the effect of pulsed magnetic field (PMF) stimulus on the improvement of blood stagnation by means of photoplethysmography (PPG). Our stimulus system was designed to generate PMF with a maximum intensity variation of 0.20 T at a transition time of 160 µs, with pulse intervals of 1 Hz. In order to quantitatively estimate vascular condition, indices such as blood vessel tension (BVT), stress power (SP), differential pulse wave index (DPI) and remained blood volume (RBV) were calculated from the second derivative of the PPG signal and power density spectrum (PDS). Our results showed that non-invasive PMF stimulus was effective in improving blood stagnation. Therefore, it may be concluded that appropriate PMF stimulus affects the blood circulatory system.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of pulsed magnetic field (PMF) and low frequency low level laser (LFLLL) stimuli on acupoint LI4 (Hegu) using photoplethysmography (PPG). Our PMF system was designed to generate maximum intensity of 0.20 T at a transition time of 0.16 ms, with pulse intervals of 1 Hz. The diode laser with wavelength of 650 nm and power of 5 mW was also employed. It was observed the change of the pulsating blood volume through measuring PPG signals from both hands. These results imply that stimulating acupoint LI4 with PMF and LFLLL improves the circulation of peripheral vascular system. In particular, PMF stimulation brings a big improvement of the blood flow even with short term stimulation of 3-4 minutes compared to LFLLL stimulus.