Suicidal behavior is attenuated in patients with multiple sclerosis by treatment with electromagnetic fields

Chronic-Exposure Low-Frequency Magnetic Fields (Magnetotherapy and Magnetic Stimulation) Influence Serum Serotonin Concentrations in Patients with Low Back Pain-Clinical Observation Study

(1) Background: The influence of serotonin on many regulatory mechanisms has not been sufficiently studied. The use of a physical method, assuming the possibility of its action on increasing the concentration of serotonin, may be the direction of therapy limiting the number of antidepressants used. The aim of the research was to study the effects of low-frequency magnetic fields of different characteristics on the circadian profile of serotonin in men with low back pain. (2) Methods: 16 men with back pain syndrome participated in the study. The patients were divided into two groups. In group 1, magnetotherapy (2.9 mT, 40 Hz, square wave, bipolar) was applied at 10.00 a.m. In group 2, the M2P2 magnetic stimulation program of the Viofor JPS device was used. Treatments in each group lasted 3 weeks, 5 days each, with breaks for Saturday and Sunday. The daily serotonin profile was determined the day before the exposure and the day after the last treatment. Blood samples (at night with red light) were collected at 8:00, 12:00, 16:00, 24:00, and 4:00. The patients did not suffer from any chronic or acute disease and were not taking any medications. (3) Results: In group 1, a significant increase in serotonin concentration was observed after 15 treatments at 4:00. In group 2, a significant increase in serotonin concentration was observed at 8:00 after the end of the treatments. In comparison between magnetotherapy and magnetic stimulation, the time points at which differences appeared after the application of serotonin occurred due to the increase in its concentrations after the application of magnetic stimulation. (4) Conclusions: Magnetotherapy and magnetic stimulation, acting in a similar way, increase the concentration of serotonin. Weak magnetic fields work similarly to the stronger ones used in TMS. It is possible to use them in the treatment of mental disorders or other diseases with low serotonin concentrations.

Extremely Low-Frequency Pulsed Magnetic Fields and Multiple Sclerosis: Effects on Neurotransmission Alone or Also on Immunomodulation? Building a Working Hypothesis

This paper outlines the current state of knowledge on the pathology and treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and critically analyses the vast clinical experience of Sandyk in the use of pulsed magnetic fields of 5 Hz at 7.5 pT to treat many symptoms of MS. A complete regression of symptoms, or at least a major improvement, is sometimes so rapid as to suggest that ELF fields exert a greater effect on axonal and synaptic neurotransmission than on the processes leading to demyelination. Pulsed magnetic fields of 50–100 Hz and a few mT (whose flux intensity is 109 times greater than that of the fields used by Sandyk) have been seen to induce profound morphological changes (the Marinozzi effect) in the plasma membrane of several cell types, including Raji human lymphoblastoid cells. These observations underlie the author's hypothesis on the possible use of such fields in the treatment of MS. Indeed, these fields should induce the functional arrest of the cells (B- and T-lymphocytes, macrophages, microglia, dendritic cells) of the MS plaque, thereby providing an ‘electromagnetic immunomodulatory boost’ to the effects of drug therapy. To test this working hypothesis, it is suggested that preliminary experimental research be carried out to ascertain: 1) the Marinozzi effect in vivo; 2) the Marinozzi effect on microglia and dendritic cells; and 3) the duration of the membrane changes and their relaxation rate. ELF magnetic fields in the picotesla and millitesla ranges are aimed at improving neurotransmission and correcting local immune pathology, respectively. Both types of field might find application in the treatment of MS patients who no longer respond to or tolerate currently used drugs.

Therapeutic effects of alternating current pulsed electromagnetic fields in multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is the third most common cause of severe disability in patients between the ages of 15 and 50 years. The cause of the disease and its pathogenesis remain unknown. The last 20 years have seen only meager advances in the development of effective treatments for the disease. No specific treatment modality can cure the disease or alter its long-term course and eventual outcome. Moreover, there are no agents or treatments that will restore premorbid neuronal function. A host of biological phenomena associated with the disease involving interactions among genetic, environmental, immunologic, and hormonal factors, cannot be explained on the basis of demyelination alone and therefore require refocusing attention on alternative explanations, one of which implicates the pineal gland as pivotal. The pineal gland functions as a magnetoreceptor organ. This biological property of the gland provided the impetus for the development of a novel and highly effective therapeutic modality, which involves transcranial applications of alternating current (AC) pulsed electromagnetic fields in the picotesla flux density. This review summarizes recent clinical work on the effects of transcranially applied pulsed electromagnetic fields for the symptomatic treatment of the disease.