Heart rate and electroencephalogram changes caused by finger acupressure on planta pedis

Preliminary experiments were carried out to investigate the feasibility of using an electroencephalogram and heart rates to evaluate the efficacy of finger acupressure on the key points of planta pedis (both soles). Continuous electroencephalograms were recorded from 19 electrodes based on the International 10-20 electrode placement system on 22 university students (21+/-2.3 years). Spectral power changes were obtained at each electrode site. The power of the alpha1 frequency range (8-10 Hz) increased slightly during acupressure although no statistical significance was observed, while heart rates decreased in all subjects (p<0.05). Cerebral cortex asymmetry in the spectral power changes was not clearly observed during the right and left sole acupressure. This preliminary study suggests that a classification of subjects is necessary in understanding brain wave data during acupressure on soles.