The Therapeutic Effect of Bilateral Alternating Stimulation Tactile Form Technology on the Stress Response

The application of bilateral alternating stimulation in tactile (BLAST) form technology, a non-invasive, somatosensory-based method, has been shown to modulate the electrical activity of brain networks that mediate the stress response, resulting in a stress-reducing effect in individuals with high reported levels of anxiety, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In this study, we examined archival data from a heterogeneous group of users (n = 1109) of BLAST technology via Touchpoints, a novel BLAST-based treatment modality, all of whom had high self-reported levels of stress and anxiety. Ratings of levels of emotional stress and bodily distress on a scale of 0 (no stress/distress) to 10 (worst stress/distress of one's life) before and after the application of Touchpoints for 30 seconds were entered into an app. Results showed a statistically significant reduction in the levels of both emotional stress and bodily distress, 62.26% and 50.502%, respectively, after 30 seconds of BLAST technology was applied. This demonstrates a clear benefit of BLAST on the stress response, reducing both emotional stress and disturbing body sensations. Recent work examining EEG changes after BLAST technology is applied suggests that BLAST may reduce sympathetic activation by reducing the electrical activity of key areas of the salience network. Further work will more precisely characterize the effects of BLAST, its potential clinical uses, and the mechanisms of actions behind it’s apparent stress-reducing effects. DOI : 10.14302/issn.2576-6694.jbbs-18-1887 Corresponding Author: Nathan S. Hageman, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA. Email: drhageman@icloud.com


Introduction
Recent advances in neuroscience have allowed us to more clearly identify which parts of the human brain mediate particular behaviors or emotional states.
With advances in medical imaging, we can identify structural and functional networks in the living human brain that are active during a specific task. We can also modulate these networks to produce changes in behavior or mood and achieve better therapeutic outcomes.
One particular method of changing the activity of certain brain networks associated with stress and anxiety is through a non-invasive somatosensory-based methodology, called Bilateral Alternating Stimulation in Tactile (BLAST) Form technology. Studies have shown that this therapeutic modality can aid in altering various brain functions and might be of therapeutic benefit to individuals with high or pathological levels of anxiety or stress [1,2]. The results from these studies using BLAST are consistent with the alternating hemispheric activation hypothesis [3], which postulates that rapidly alternating patterns of electrical activity in the two hemispheres might increase inter-hemispheric interaction.
Of considerable interest is the effect of BLAST on the amygdala and its associated networks, given how closely they are linked to feelings of anxiety and stress.
An electroencephalogram (EEG) is a non-invasive form of data collection, which evaluates electrical activity in the brain and tracks brain wave patterns. An EEG study by Harper et al., 2009 on subjects with PTSD found that BLAST had a de-potentiation effect on those synapses in the amygdala that are active during the recall of fearbased memories [4]. Archival EEG data gathered by our group suggest that, when BLAST is applied, there are significant changes in electrical activity in the amygdala, insula, and somatosensory cortex, as measured by EEG.
These results suggest that BLAST may have an effect on the electrical activity in key brain areas associated with stress and anxiety and whose overall effect may de-escalate the human stress response and also lessen or eliminate bodily sensations associated with distressing recall or physical pain.
In particular, the amygdala (and, to a lesser extent, the insula) has been identified as part of the salience network, which is thought to modulate the brain's reaction to stress and create an appropriate behavioral response [5][6][7]. It's principle cortical and sub-cortical nodes include the anterior cingulate cortex, anterior insula, amygdala, ventral tegmental area, and the ventral striatum. There is strong evidence linking defects in the salience network with many major psychiatric disorders, including generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks and PTSD [8,9]. Previous studies, along with recent work by our group showed quantitative EEG changes (i.e., amygdala, insula, and somatosensory cortex) in subjects after treatment with BLAST, suggest that the stress-reducing effect of BLAST on the stress response may be due in part to its effect on reducing electrical activity in the salience network,   To determine whether these reductions in the stress response are statistically significant, the means of the paired difference of each subject's rating of their level of stress/distress before and after using Touchpoints (BLAST) for 30 seconds were compared using a paired t-test. Results are shown below in Table   2 (emotional stress) and internal and external sensory information [8,9]. The results presented here show that the application of BLAST leads to a clear clinical reduction in feelings of emotional stress and bodily distress, both of which are manifestations of the stress response. In addition, the quantitative EEG changes in key areas of the salience network that occur after BLAST use may explain why BLAST seems to de-escalate whatever stress response is       Touchpoints could be an effective therapeutic tool to reduce a pathological stress response, either by itself or as an adjunct to psychotherapy.

Conclusion
We showed that the application of BLAST using Touchpoints for 30 seconds resulted in a statistically significant reduction in a subject's levels of emotional stress and feelings of bodily distress. These results demonstrate a clear stress-reducing effect and suggest that BLAST may be an effective, non-invasive method for reducing stress and anxiety. Further work is needed to fully characterize this stress-reducing effect of BLAST and determine its therapeutic applications.