Alleviating pain and body damage using PEMF and TENS

The power of TENS, healing with PEMF

One cannot do any research on a specific illness these days without the terms TENS and PEMF popping up. Let s forego the old adage that magnetism has mystical healing powers right at this moment in time.

TENS or transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation is a device which passes a very weak current through parts of your body to provide temporary pain relief. It is believed that the electrical pulses can release endorphins and other substances to stop pain signals in the brain.

PEMF or pulsed electrical motive field or force uses a made up electric coil to provide the necessary field. 

In both cases the amplitude (strength) and period (length) of the pulse can be increased.  Note however that both types of therapy are different.

I suffer from peripheral neuropathy as a result of diabetes and the usual treatment is having to take some or other anti-depressant pill which big pharma discovered cuts down the level of pain felt.  The problem with this is that its all that it does, and in my case that didn’t work either.  Having seen a neurologist who determined that the disease was also partially caused by low levels of Vitamin B – in my case B12, what was determined that there were no other underlying issues. (you will get a script to get B12 injections for 6 months).

Vitamin B12

So my first port of call was to TakeaLot where I purchased Vitamin B12. This did make a remarkable difference.  But where to from here?

The TENS machine – testing ground 1

I purchased a cheap and nasty TENS machine from TAL for R300.00 or $15.00 expecting it to be useless.  One gets what one pays for and to be brutally honest, I was surprised to find that it worked very well indeed.  There were 3 or 4 other sellers on market place trying to move these products and the most expensive one was R1000.00 or $50.00 for an exact same unit.  So do your research.  The upmarket machines cost from R6 000.00 up but do ensure that the machine will work for you, hence me going the cheapest route.  Stimulating muscles when one has been injured and is possibly immobile is a very god reason for looking at a TENS device. Doctors will refer you to a specialist because not everyone is an ideal TENS patient with usual warnings going out to epileptics, persons wearing pacemakers and the pregnant, unless under supervision.

The PEMF machine – testing ground 2

And this is where I want to be focusing. Much has been written about this, the pros the cons and whether its just snake oil.  I would like to dwell on the facts here,  starting with this video:

The pros are given but what I think of relevance here is that NASA concluded their own research, especially in the loss of bone and muscle mass in astronauts.  Noninvasive Therapy for Cartilage Regeneration.

I would also like to promote an avid YouTuber, designer Mirko Pavleski – a really fascinating and inventive person who has dedicated much of his experimentation to this subject.  Please subscribe to his channel.

I won’t put all his videos here, he has quite  a few on the subject, so will go with one of his first projects on PEMF (I believe) and then a second one which cover the ZK-PP1 or ZK-PP2 motor driver.

The above video covers a design which incorporates the use of an Arduino.  I believe this video is a must see before moving onto the video below. Enjoy!

The above video uses the ZK-PP1K  pulse width modulator for driving brushed and brushless electric motors.  The main difference between the PP1 and PP2 is the drive current, the PP2K can output up to 8A but will require a heatsink for continuous usage above 5A.

Specs are below.

ZK PP1K PWM Signal Generator 1Hz-150KHz PWM Pulse Frequency Duty Cycle Adjustable Square Wave Generator

Used to generate square wave rectangular wave signal to control DC motor or stepper motor driver; used for servo motor, stepper motor, electric clamping jaw, instead of PLC pulse, etc.
Matching driver to achieve dimming, speed control, control solenoid valve, but can not directly drive the lamp motor solenoid valve and other loads
Two modes can be selected: PWM mode a frequency (continuous) duty cycle. Note that the number of pulses can not be set in this mode, has been issued pulse; PULSE pulse mode a positive pulse width time, negative pulse width time, delayed start time, and the number of pulses adjustable
With a start/stop button, also can be an external switch to control the output signal ON/OFF
Wide voltage input 3.3-30V, with anti-reverse connection protection
5.08mm screw type terminal for easy wiring, with housing
Specifications:

Working voltage: 3.3~30V, with anti-reverse connection protection
Frequency range: 1Hz~150KHz, accuracy 1% or so
Duty cycle range: 0-100%, 1% step
Number of pulses: 1-9999, or infinite
Delay output time: 0.000s-9999s, lower limit can be set to 1ms
Positive and negative pulse width length: 0.000s-9999s, the lower limit can be set to 1ms
Signal carrying capacity: less than 30mA
Output signal amplitude: the amplitude is equal to the supply voltage

Specs for the ZK-PP2K are below

ZK PP2K PWM Signal Generator 1Hz-150KHz PWM Pulse Frequency Duty Cycle Adjustable Square Wave Generator

A handy PWM controller for driving and testing DC motors. This controller has 2 different operation modes with which the behavior of the DC motor can be set. In addition to the buttons on the front of the screen of this controller, there is another connector on the back of the PCB to which a stop button (not included) can be connected.

Specifications:

• Supply voltage: 5 – 30V DC
• Output voltage: 5 – 30V DC (same as supply voltage)
• Maximum output current: 8A*
• Frequency range: 1Hz – 150kHz*
• Frequency accuracy: ±2%
• Duty cycle range: 0 – 100%
• Signal shape: Square wave**
• Connector stop button: JST-XH 2p
• Operating temperature: -20 – 85°C
• Dimensions: See images

Pinout:

• V+: Supply voltage +
• V-: Supply voltage –
• OUT+: Motor voltage +
• OUT-: Motor voltage –

Operation mode interfaces (see images for more info and a quick guide):

• PWM mode: Set the switching frequency (kHz) and duty cycle.
• Pulse mode: Set how long the motor turns on and how long off in seconds.
• Pulse mode set: Set the number of pulses and the delay in seconds before starting.

Package contents:

• 1x ZK-PP2K DC-Motor Tester

*Note: At an output current greater than 5A and/or a PWM frequency above 20kHz, keep an eye on the temperature of the MOSFET, it may need cooling during prolonged use under these conditions.

**Note: At higher frequencies, the signal may no longer be a pure square wave signal.