Electro-Acupuncture According To Voll (EAV) or Electro-Dermal Screening Electro-Acupuncture (EDS)

Back in the late 1940's, Dr. Reinholt Voll, MD began an investigation of the effects of electricity on the human physiology. In his studies, Dr. Voll used a technique known as Impedance or OHM metering. In simple terms, some materials are very electrically conductive, for example metals like steel and copper - electricity flows very easily through metals and therefore there is no substantial resistance on the electricity flowing through the metal. Other materials are not conductive, for example wood or rubber, and since these materials are not conductive, their resistance to electrical current is very high. An OHM meter measures electrical resistance (impedance), and it is also capable of measuring conductance since the inverse of resistance (1/resistivity approximately), is conductance.  

Dr. Voll found that if he tested the electrical conductance on any general area of the human body, there was a fairly high level of electrical resistance. This is a curious point since we know that the body has a large volume of electrically conductive fluids within it. But, the skin is very resistant, by its nature to electrical current. Dr. Voll also found that at certain specific locations on the anatomy, the electrical flow is much more conductive, and these points generally correspond to the Eastern Medical Acupuncture points. Therefore, you can use an impedance or OHM meter to test the acupuncture points. This is somewhat simplistic, but it does describe the basic process of EAV.

EAV Testing indirectly measures the "Energetic System" of the body. It does not measure the physiology, the biochemistry or the pathology components of the human body. However, the “Energetic System” is related to these components, from the standpoint of physics, not chemistry. 

Acupuncture is a science that works with the "Energetic" system of the body. The human body is biochemical (physical). It has an electrical component and also an energetic aspect as well. The acupuncture meridians are a communication and energetic flow network. 

“Energetic”, in this sense, is a somewhat elusive term. Yes, the meridians do have some form of energy, but it is not electricity. There is a controversy about the validity of Acupuncture because scientists cannot measure the energetic system of the body directly, i.e. they cannot prove that acupuncture meridians exists using conventional measurements. It is important that you keep this fact in mind. EAV does not directly measure the acupuncture/energetic system of the body directly. This is not scientifically possible at this time. But, there is a bio-physiological phenomenon that occurs when you run electricity through the acupuncture points. The electrical flow (conductance) gives us an indication of the energetic health status of the meridian that we are testing. For example, if you are testing the Liver Meridian with an EAV instrument, the meter will give an indication of the Liver Meridian's energetic status. Remember, energetic is not electrical, but we can use electricity to indirectly measure the energetic system. 

The "Universal Baseline" makes EAV a viable testing modality. 

The EAV/OHM meter gives us conductance readings and there is intrinsic value in this; however the actual reason that we can use EAV to evaluate the meridians is because, as Dr. Voll discovered, there is a Universal Baseline. Regardless of who is tested, no matter what their age, weight, sex, nationality or race, a reading of 50 with no change over time (no indicator drop), is an indication of an energetically healthy meridian. Readings that are significantly above 50 (65 plus) indicate inflammation, and this is due to the fact that when tissue becomes inflamed, the concentration of body fluids increases and therefore the conductance will increase accordingly. This inflammation occurs in the tissue and also in the proximity of the related acupuncture point as well. When a reading is significantly lower than 50 (below 30) then it is believed that this meridian is low energy or possibly degenerative. When a reading steadily drops in value from the high point down, this is known as an “Indicator Drop" (ID), and it can point to a weakness or disturbance in the meridian. 

EAV requires both art and science.  

Every EAV device is a technical instrument, but without the intuitive feeling of the practitioner it is useless for testing acupuncture points. 
Notably, this dissuades the interest of many practitioners. But this sensitivity and feeling is a fundamental component of medicine.  

You can put a scalpel in the hand of any medical school student and tell him where to cut, how deep and the length of the incision. But the difference that qualifies a top surgeon is in part due to his sense of how to cut which can only come from the experience and his intuitive sense of surgical cutting. For example:

Good acupuncturists feel where to place the needles. 

EAV is a valuable test because it gives us a powerful, energetic insight into the physiology, biochemistry and pathology of an individual. 

Keep in mind that EAV is indirectly testing the Energetic System, not the physiology, biochemistry or pathology of the body. Making any inference about the health of the body through EAV must be kept in the domain of energetically related indications. EAV status is closely related to all of these other factors and it can be an indicator or qualitative screening tool, but it is not testing the actual physiology, nor the biochemistry or pathology. It is Physics, not Chemistry.

Contributed by Robert Eanes