Bio-Tron

The Bio-Tron is a portable, battery operated meter for non-invasive monitoring of physiological changes in skin conductivity. The Bio-Tron was available from Remission Foundation with both brass probes for Dr. Rheinhold Voll's Electro-Acupuncture according to Voll (EAV) and Bioelectronic Functions Diagnosis (BFD) as well as silver probes designed for Dr. Helmut Schimmel's Vegatest or Vegetative Reflex Test (VRT) style protocols. The Bio-Tron was the only instrument in its price range to offer such a range of testing options for the student or practitioner of European methods of Biological Medicine.

The Remission Foundation was founded by Glen-Martin: Swartwout©. He has trained in Biological Medicine through Dr. Alexander Wood of Toronto, Dr. Walter Sturm and others of the Occidental Institute Research Foundation in Vancouver, Dr. Helmut Schimmel of Germany. He has also completed certification as an instructor in these methods with Roy Martina, M.D. (Europe).

How to Operate the Bio-Tron:

Labels appearing on the Bio-Tron unit are printed in bold-faced type.

On/Off Control:

Turn the volume control clockwise from the Off position to turn the unit on.

Biofeedback Sound Volume:

When in the on position, the Volume control regulates the sound volume to your desired intensity level. Turn the knob clockwise until you can easily hear the audio signal when testing. With practice and experience, you will begin to hear much of the information you need for effective testing without having to look at the indicator reading. This will help save time and reduce fatigue.

Conductivity Meter Calibration:

The Bio-Tron has an analog meter with units from 0 to 100. This relative scale measurement range can be easily calibrated with the Calibrate control.

Calibration for EAV testing:

With the Test switch held in the left position, simply adjust the Calibrate control to a reading of 50. This is best done after setting the Volume at the desired level. If a major adjustment must be made in the Volume level during the course of testing, you should check your calibration as a slight correction may be necessary to obtain accuracy within 1 point. Typically, test accuracy within 5 points is adequate, so should you forget to perform this recalibration, it should not affect the results of your test. The best solution in most cases is to find a preferred Volume setting and always use that same setting for your EAV testing. Then, unless you also do VRT testing with the same instrument, you will not have to recalibrate the instrument each time you use it.

Calibration for VRT testing:

The test point must be individually calibrated to 100 in this test method. As you achieve a stable test reading on the desired point, simply turn the Calibrate control clockwise to increase the reading to 100 or counterclockwise to decrease it to 100. The reading should not exceed 100 for testing purposes, as the ability to distinguish a response will be diminished and false negative responses can occur, resulting in greater difficulty in testing as well as the loss of valuable test information.

Connecting the Test Probes:

The Bio-Tron from Remission Foundation comes complete with two sets of test probes. One is brass for EAV testing. The other is Sterling silver for VRT testing.

There are two probes in each set. Each probe is plugged into a banana plug on one of the wires attached to the Probes plug assembly. The large cylindrical hand electrode in each set is the ground electrode. It is typically held in one hand of the person being tested. When testing points on the hand, it is held in the opposite hand. When physical conditions prohibit holding this electrode securely by hand (e.g. amputee, paralysis, etc.), it can be placed firmly under a bare foot or another area of bare skin.

EAV Test Probes:

The brass test probes are used for EAV and BFD testing. The large hand electrode is described above. The second brass probe is the smaller point tester, which is held and manipulated by the person conducting the test. This has a bull�s eye shaped end, which is designed to hold the small amount of water needed to hydrate the skin and increase conductivity for testing with brass electrodes.

The brass test probes are used with water on both probes to increase conductivity. Typically, a moist paper towel is used to cover the hand electrode, while the point electrode is dipped in water. Tap water or other water containing ions is used. Distilled water, and some reverse osmosis (RO) waters may contain too low a concentration of ions to conduct electricity adequately for testing purposes.

VRT Test Probes:

The silver probes for Vega-style testing do not require water for testing, since silver itself has a much higher conductivity than brass. The point tester probe has a spherical probe tip to test the desired electroacupuncture point or area.

Connecting the probes:

To determine which probe to connect to which banana plug, first connect the probes plug to the Probes receptacle on the front of the Bio-Tron unit. Next turn the unit on with the Volume control. Now touch one banana plug to the top plate of the Bio-Tron unit. If the needle deflects (responds), this is the active plug for the point tester probe. If there is no response on the meter, this is the neutral ground plug for the hand electrode.

Testing the Batteries:

The Bio-Tron unit comes with a built-in battery testing feature labelled Batt. When this battery test switch is held in the left position with the unit turned on, the meter will indicate the status of the batteries. A reading of 50 or more is adequate, as indicated by the Batt. OK range on the meter dial.

Replacing the Batteries:

The Bio-Tron operates on four (4) �AA� size alkaline batteries, which were installed prior to shipping. When these batteries test low (see above), they can be replaced by simply turning the unit off, openning the Bio-Tron unit using only a screw driver to remove the four (4) screws that secure the case.

Cautions with Pacemakers and Pregnancy:

As with other electrical devices, it is recommended that this instrument not be used on individuals wearing pacemakers. Also, even though the techniques involved are non-invasive and do not puncture the skin, it is recommended to avoid point testing during pregnancy. In classical acupuncture, many points are forbidden for treatment during pregnancy, and acupressure or other electrical or mechanical stimulation of these points is best avoided as well.

Disclaimer:

No medical claims are made or implied for the Bio-Tron instrument. The Bio-Tron is considered a non-diagnostic, non-Medical device in the States, which simply measures changes in skin conductivity, sometimes referred to as Galvanic Skin Response (GSR), although in a more specialized way than typical GSR devices, since it measures at specified points used in electrodermal screening protocols developed in European Biological Medicine. The amount of current to which the body tissues are exposed is very slight and of a degree generally recognized as safe.