Cranial Electric Stimulation (CES) is where the current is sent across the head. Some think this is contraindicated. See the section on contraindications. CES is typically used to stimulate release of brain chemicals depending on the frequency used, such as endorphins and serotonin. Often CES is used to affect mood or relieve pain. When done using FSM the intent is to treat the brain directly such as for inflammation.
The electrodes are usually either clipped to the earlobes, placed on the mastoid process or at SJJ17. The stimulation level depends on the treatment approach. Usually it is set to a comfortable level for the patient. In FSM, the treatment is usually run at 100uA which is significantly below sensation level for most people.
I have found CES useful for treating alcoholics to help their mood. It is also useful using FSM across the head. For example the protocol for PTSD is run from the forehead to the back of the neck to treat the brain and usually works well. I created a protocol to treat the sensory and motor areas of the brain and the sympathetic and parasympathetic nerves in the scalp to help make scalp acupuncture work better after it quit working on me and it worked again for about a month before quitting again. So running current through the head is fine as long as you keep the current relatively low and the patient doesn’t have seizures. FSM even has a protocol to treat concussions.
#electroacupuncture #ces #fsm #acupuncture