A subjective method is mainly used to evaluate the degree of pain, and it is difficult for patients who cannot express themselves in language to evaluate pain. In particular, it is more vulnerable to certain groups with communication disorders, such a...
A subjective method is mainly used to evaluate the degree of pain, and it is difficult for patients who cannot express themselves in language to evaluate pain. In particular, it is more vulnerable to certain groups with communication disorders, such as the elderly with dementia and vegetative humans. Therefore, an experiment was conducted by seeking a method for objectively evaluating pain. In this study, basic research was performed for objective pain evaluation by confirming changes in biosignals through electrical stimulation.
This experiment was conducted with the approval of Dongguk University's Institutional Review Board(IRB), and the study subjects were normal people in their 20s and 30s (average age 28.9 years). For the experimental method, progressively ascending electrical stimulation was applied to the right arm using PainVision PS-2100 equipment, and photoplethysmography (PPG) and Electrodermal activity (EDA) biosignals were measured on the left arm using Biopac mp36. When a test subject could not tolerate a progressively increasing electrical stimulation, the stop switch was pressed, and the PPG amplitude, PPG Peak to Peak Interval (PPI), and EDA data values were compared at the start and end points of the electrical stimulation.
As a result of the experiment, it was confirmed that both PPG and EDA biosignals were changed by electrical stimulation. From the results of this study, biosignal changes due to stimulation can present data that are fundamental to research that evaluates pain objectively, and is expected to be used as an auxiliary diagnostic tool for Esthesiometer medical devices.