Adaptive Auricular Electrical Stimulation Controlled by Vital BIOSIGNALS - Transition from Fixed to Adaptive and Synchronized Electrical Stimulation Controlled by Heart Rate Variability and Blood Perfusion

The auricular electrical punctual stimulation is usually applied for pain relief. The common application involves fixed stimulation parameters, which makes the simulation insensitive to prevailing pain or stress level and may lead to a disadvantageous over-stimulation. In order to address this issue, the given position paper presents an experimental background leading to a conceptual design of an adaptive and synchronized stimulation technique. Here parameters of the heart rate variability are used as stimulation biofeedback, while the stimulating signal is synchronized with cardiac or respiratory activity to boost stimulation effects.