Good luck with the experiment. I looked at two different Marubeni LEDs at the 1070 range. One is extremely powerful and around $80 per unit. The far less powerful one is about $8 a piece with a minimum order of 10 LEDs.



Nakandakari

I am curious how you are qualifying or quantifying any changes. If you regularly receive physical therapy, you might be able to get some feedback that way.

Central ataxia is a very general term, are you having both muscle weakness and balance issues in your extremities?

I think it would be very helpful to keep a health diary that details what you ate each day, lists the kinds of medications you took (or failed to take), what kinds of exercise you tried, what your general state of health was that day, and what speciffic issues with your condition you noted that day. Also note any changes that you think might be relevent (like sleep disturbance or sexual side effects).

Good luck with this alternative treatment. I hope that you find some benefit from it. My prayers are with you.

Nakandakari

A simple monitor of change that might be useful is to record the time you can stand on one foot. Do it for each side and take the best of five readings on each. Do it at maximum "on" each time, too.

This gives data on both lower leg strength and balance as well.

Good suggestion. I like the idea of a quantitative metric. thanks

I am concerned about one aspect of your test helmet. You need to be cautious about getting too hot. The LEDs can produce heat if you increase the amount of LEDs or if you increase the exposure time. LEDs generally do not produce too much heat, but as you increase the amount of them and have direct skin contact, you might make your head temperature too hot.

Just to be careful, why not sit directly in front of a box fan while doing your test. It can't hurt your results, might make you more comfortable, and make keep your head temperature down.

In their articles they said that the exposure time is ten minutes per day. In their patent, they state, "A factor here is the period of irradiation and, preferably, the period should be at least a specified minimum of 30 seconds at a repetition rate/frequency of 450-800 Hz and preferably for at least two consecutive days and up to several months more preferably still the treatment is over several weeks.

Preferably, the electromagnetic radiation is applied to the affected area for at least a few minutes and up to an hour. A typical exposure time is in the region of 3 minutes per day.

Preferably, the electromagnetic radiation is applied for at least two consecutive days and up to several weeks depending on the nature and severity of the condition. "

It's important to relaize that in medicine more is NOT BETTER. For example when you take a drug, more might not help you and might hurt you. In physical therapy as in any exercise, more can actually have a detrimental effect. Be cautious and prudent.

You may not see any effect from the LEDs at the lower wavelength. We need the experiement to be repeated with several other neurology researchers, but for now, you might only see results at LEDs in the 1072nm range. I would carefully read the patent again. Realize that if the researchers could have used cheaper LEDs (the more common ones you have found) they would likely have used them. Keeping the price down is a factor, so if there is efficacy at the lower LED wavelength, I'm sure they would have used them. From their patent, it appears that they tried many different wavelengths to find an optimum range.


Gook luck,
N

I do plan on going to 1072nm in the future. Presently I'm concentrating on making a new version that will encompass a larger area of the brain.

There is very little heat from 15 LEDs operated in pulse mode.

On another note, I think you all might be interest in this cbs interview:



uh sorry not allowed to post a link to another site.

Could you please report or continue to report your progress using the home made IR helmet?

It's been awhile since I last posted. My current status is that I've moved away from a helmet design to a single light source that I position at desired locations on my head .. basically I sit in front of the lamp and move around as needed. I also use it on my shoulder to reduce the pain from a rotator cuff injury that occurred a few years ago. The lamp is a 50 watt halogen spot bulb GE # 90633 rated for a 2500 hours life. I believe the lamp cost about $7 from Lowes.

The trick is to select out the desired wavelengths. I used a 3" diameter PVC pipe about 1.5 inches deep, sealed both ends with Plexiglas and silicon sealant and then filled the tube with water. This will limit the longer wavelength to about 1300 nm. In order to keep much of the visible light out I added some red food coloring to the water. The overall bandpass is approximately 600 nm to 1300nm. Clearly not limited to the 1072 nm that Dougal was using so we're not quite there yet. I've order a glass filter which is taking a few months to arrive to reduce the band pass down to a range from 1000 nm to 1300nm.

I irradiate myself in different locations for 5 minutes at a time. Frankly the results to date are mixed. I see no change in symptoms in my main problem which is a condition known as Central Ataxia , but some relief in shoulder pain.

Hopefully after I get closer to the desired wavelengths the results will improve somewhat.

I tried to post a picture of the device but could not simply "cut and paste". Maybe someone could suggest a simple way to add a photo.

Thanks for the info. I'm currently redesigning the apparatus to cover the temples and forehead in addition to the cerebellum. Also will increase the exposure time considerably.

I am presently experiencing slurred speech, poor balance, and fine motor skill problems due to the ataxia.

Before trying the Maribeni LEDs, I want to complete preliminary tests at 940nm to see if there is any change in symptoms.

I'm I reading the manufacturers site wrong? This is the pricing that I found:

Part No. L1070-66-60 $347.14 (1- 9 pieces)
Lens 13 (+/- 13 degree half view angle) $30.86
Lens 55 (+/- 27 degree half view angle) $40.50
Heat sink $17.36
Assembly fee $3.21

Total w/ Lens 13 = $398.57 PER UNIT