HFIT – Can High Frequency Impulse Therapy Help You Fall Asleep?
Participants were randomly assigned either a functional HFIT device or one without electrical pulse delivery to supplement their pain regimen. Clinicians and research coordinators at clinical sites screened eligible patients, while participants self-applied their devices daily.
At week 4, more HFIT users demonstrated a minimal clinically important difference in pain and function compared to TENS and usual care at week 4. These results were statistically significant.
Reduction in Pain
Pulsed radio frequency (RF) treatment uses pulsed RF waves to alleviate pain by altering how nerve tissue functions, effectively blocking any potentially unpleasant sensory signals from traveling down nerve fibres to reach the brain and increasing perceived intensity of painful sensations. Pulsed RF works by stimulating A delta fibres (Ab), which respond more favorably to lower frequencies than their counterparts and can activate opioid mechanisms and block transmission of unpleasant sensory signals into the brain, effectively decreasing perceived intensity. This therapy works by activating opioid mechanisms while inhibiting transmission of unpleasant sensory signals into the brain as well. Pulsed Radio Frequency works by activating A delta fibres (Ab), stimulating A delta fibres more responsive to lower frequencies which work by activating opioid mechanisms and blocking transmission of unpleasant signals between nerve fibres to reach brain. This treatment works by activating A delta fibres (Ab), stimulating their counterparts more responsive than their counterparts that facilitate pain reduction by inhibiting transmission of such sensory signals into brain. This treatment works by activating opioid mechanisms while inhibiting transmission.
RF treatment is an affordable, safe, noninvasive and effective solution to chronic pain management. Unlike surgical approaches or medications that may need to be prescribed by doctors, this procedure can be carried out in your local clinic by qualified therapists with only mild anaesthetic injections needed for injection. Studies have proven its success at managing both acute and chronic forms of discomfort such as muscle-skeletal discomfort as well as neuropathy-induced pain.
HF electroporation therapy has been demonstrated to significantly alleviate pain across a variety of musculoskeletal conditions, with studies revealing its long-term effectiveness; over four weeks it proved consistent improvement for many participants, creating lasting pain reduction – key for increasing functional mobility. This significant milestone marked another important achievement in the field.
Cell/animal experiments, modeling studies and theoretical considerations have demonstrated that high frequency pulses can effectively decrease pain by altering nerve signal transmission along nerve pathways. This change is believed to be attributable to inhibition of large pain-conducting fibers such as A-delta and C-fibers due to reduced stimulation by an HF pulse.
Recent research involved individuals filling out the short-form McGill Pain Questionnaire after receiving biphasic pulse protocols with differing interphase and interpulse delays. Participants reported shorter pulses with shorter delays were least painful, while longer ones with more unpleasant interphase/pulse delay times caused more discomfort.
Reasoning behind this observation lies with the Gate Control Theory of Pain, which proposes that stimulation of muscle contractions may lead to activation/excitation of large pain-conducting fibers and therefore closing off gate transmitters that transmit sensory stimuli to the brain. Furthermore, increasing pulse duration may produce this phenomenon which was observed during this study.
Increased Flexibility
Electrical stimulation causes depolarisation of intact motor neurones, prompting muscles to contract. The strength of muscle contraction depends on frequency and pulse width chosen by clinician; at lower frequencies (up to 10Hz), muscle twitch produced may be mild; increasing frequency (fewer pulses per second) will increase its power until strong enough to induce movement in joints.
Pulsed electromagnetic field therapy is an noninvasive, non-surgical way of treating various injuries and conditions. It uses bursts of low-level magnetic frequencies delivered directly into the body to stimulate healing in cells, providing pain relief as well as helping with long-term issues like depression or diabetes. This form of treatment has proven particularly effective.
PEMF therapy not only stimulates muscle contraction through electromyography (EMS), but it can also increase joint mobility and flexibility by increasing blood circulation – this boost in circulation stimulates cellular repair and enhances tissue metabolism while simultaneously decreasing inflammation and initiating the natural regeneration process.
At a PEMF session, electric current flows through copper or aluminium coils connected by solenoids or radiant circuits connected to copper or aluminium plates that emit magnetic fields. Using dials and buttons on these devices, this magnetic field can be adjusted between 18MHz and 900MHz while intensity can be set anywhere between 1-10Gauss.
As it is important to select an effective device and ensure it fits comfortably on the patient, electrodes must adhered directly to skin free from oil or lotions and have to adhere securely. Furthermore, targeting of appropriate muscles is also key, for instance if one wishes to achieve wrist extension using electrotherapy, electrodes need to be placed on forearm with wrist in pronation rather than supination i.e. inflexion; similar holds true with ankle/foot extensions. Many EMS devices offer adjustable volume settings; it is wise to start small before gradually increasing both settings until reaching desired outcome.
Improved Sleep
People suffering from insomnia often struggle to fall asleep at night due to stress, anxiety, depression or sleep apnea. High frequency impulse therapy may help remedy this situation as it reduces anxiety and depression which in turn improves quality sleep. Furthermore, high frequency impulse therapy stimulates your brain so you feel more relaxed during restorative rest periods which also increases your chances of quickly falling asleep at night.
Researchers recently conducted a study which demonstrated how high frequency impulse therapy could significantly enhance sleep in individuals suffering from chronic insomnia. In a placebo-controlled trial involving participants receiving either active rTMS or sham rTMS treatments, data logs from each night during the run-in period and morning surveys from each day were analyzed as well as timing of first sleep spindle detection for each epoch of 2-hr EEG sleep staging analysis were reviewed for each subject-night without phase-locked auditory stimulation had sleep onset times longer than 30 min, while this rate dropped dramatically to only 25% among subjects receiving active rTMS treatment.
Acoustic neuromodulation was studied for its effects on the slow oscillations found during NREM stage 3 (“deep”) sleep, with studies revealing it enhances memory consolidation3,4, improves immune function5, and regulates autonomic activity6. Unfortunately, studies using alpha frequencies outside N3 sleep did not succeed in speeding up the onset of sleep7.
These studies illustrate that HF rTMS may be an effective approach for treating sleep issues through neuromodulation; however, further research should be conducted in order to optimize its use in clinical practice8.
One randomized sham-controlled study of rTMS treatment for epilepsy demonstrated significant improvements in subjective questionnaires but no changes to actigraphy parameters, suggesting placebo effects can influence sleep outcomes9. By contrast, another rTMS study using parietal cortex stimulation among MDD patients led to improvements in PSQI scores and actigraphy parameters, although polysomnography recordings did not reveal any improvements10.
Increased Energy
Contrasting TENS devices that use electric energy across the skin to cause muscles to contract, high frequency impulse therapy administers pulses of electromagnetic field energy in specific regions of the body. These pulses stimulate cells into producing more energy which in turn reduces pain, inflammation and speeds recovery after surgery or injury.
Magnetic fields are created when an electric current passes through copper or aluminium coil solenoids called solenoids or radiant circuits in devices. The electric current regulates both frequency and intensity of electromagnetic fields emitted. Solenoids typically emit electromagnetic fields between 18 MHz to 900 MHz; their frequencies can usually be measured either as Hertz (Hz) or Gauss (G). When used instead of radiant circuits, however, frequency tends to be much lower – measured in milliwatts instead.
Recent results of a randomized controlled trial demonstrated that adding high frequency impulse therapy to traditional physical therapy (PT) effectively alleviated knee pain and function for patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee. The pilot study also utilized hybrid form impulse therapy treatment and included educational and healthy lifestyle coaching as part of its intervention plan.
This study also assessed the efficacy of an alternative therapy known as HALF-MIS, which utilizes TENS pulses with additional priming pulses added as primoacoustic therapy; similarly, its application utilizes music and vibrations to aid the body’s natural healing processes and restoration.
Prior studies on vibroacoustic therapy have had mixed results; while some demonstrated its ability to relieve fibromyalgia pain and other conditions, others failed to demonstrate any meaningful change. This research study marked the first to compare vibroacoustic treatment with traditional physical therapy for MSK pain; its findings demonstrated HALF-MIS was as effective as traditional TENS while providing additional benefits, including improved knee function and decreased depression. Anecdotal reports from clinicians also indicate it could help relieve depressive symptoms; hence it should be considered as part of treatment plan for MSK pain patients as an additional therapy option.