Why the space program? Well, the needs of astronauts in space are radically different from those of average people here on earth. Try running an IV (intravenous) line with no gravity! And how will drugs react under conditions of weightlessness? And then there's the shear number of medications that would need to be taken along to address all the different possible medical problems. Something new and qualitatively different had to be thought up.

Enter Dr. Alexander Karasev, who led a team of physicians and scientists at Sochi University in the late 1970s to address this very concern. Rather than approach the problem from the biochemical viewpoint, which is the basis of pharmaceutical drugs, he and his team opted for a bioelectrical model, which effectively stimulates the body to heal itself.

The approach was not without precedent. The medical literature is full of case studies and other research that shows electrical stimulation can reduce and eliminate tumors, reduce pain, and speed the healing of broken bones. But the studies tended to be isolated without a comprehensive approach to treatment.

So Karasev's team started with a basic electro-stimulation device called a TENS unit. TENS stands for Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation. It is a method of pain relief. In TENS therapy, electrodes are placed on the skin, either directly over the painful area or, more commonly, at key points along a nerve pathway. A small battery-powered generator emits a slight electrical charge through wires to the electrodes.

The sensation produced by the electrical stimulation appears to override the pain messages and may even stimulate the body to produce its own natural morphine-like substances, which minimize pain.

How Does SCENAR Work?

But the SCENAR device is of an order of magnitude greater, a veritable quantum leap in technology over TENS.

In conventional TENS, for example, the pain subsides usually only while the unit is activated. With SCENAR, pain relief extends beyond the actual treatment, often weeks beyond.

That's because with the use of TENS devices, the body adapts itself to the electrical signal and eventually just ignores it. The net result? The pain returns.

This is one of the major distinguishing factors in SCENAR therapy. The SCENAR device sends out a signal and then waits for it to return from the body, kind of like radar. The device then reads the returning signal and adjusts its own subsequent signal. Because of this biofeedback mechanism, each new impulse differs from the previous one, thus overcoming the adaptiveness of the body to a single, continuous electrical signal as in TENS.

SCENAR therapy also influences local blood flow, especially in regulating micro-circulation. That's important in treatment, as blood brings the building blocks for repair and removes dead tissue and waste products.

But one of the biggest factors in the effectiveness of SCENAR therapy is its ability to induce the release of neuropeptides. While SCENAR also induces the body to release natural opium-like painkillers called endorphins (similar to the action of TENS), it is the release of neuropeptides that enables SCENAR to quickly heal burns, wounds, and fractures.

Neuropeptides are types of peptides (which can be considered fragments of proteins) and are found primarily in nerve tissue, particularly in a type of nerve fiber called Type C.

Why is that important? Because neuropeptides regulate so much of our life, from basic cellular functions to emotions of all kinds and even instincts like maternal behavior and bonding. Neuropeptides regulate almost all life processes on the cellular level, thus linking together all body systems. They have been referred to as the body's internal pharmacy, the key in the lock that causes the cascading, chain reaction effect, creating a holistic body response.

Among other regulatory functions, neuropeptides are profoundly involved in inflammation, and they even regulate immune cells like lymphocytes, macrophages, and mast cells.

Essentially, to control the neuropeptides is to control the body!

This ability to induce the release of regulatory neuropeptides is the fundamental reason why one device can be used to treat so many different medical problems including asthma, hypertension, poor circulation, the effects of stroke, and even infertility.

These are not just claims. Each medical problem treatable by SCENAR therapy has been clinically and scientifically investigated and proven to be factual.

The best part of the bioelectromagnetic approach to medicine is that it is non-addictive, causes no drowsiness, and has no side effects with the exception of possible skin irritation caused by the electrodes.

Treatment With the SCENAR Device

The SCENAR device looks like a TV remote control, weighs in at about 300 grams (about 10 ounces), and is powered by a simple 9 volt battery.

At the head of the device, on one side, is a metal plate that is placed in contact with the skin and through which the current is directed.

With the plate maintaining skin contact, the device is slowly drawn over localized areas of the body surface, where there is pain for example, rather than attached to one place. It can also be drawn along specific, designated therapeutic regions, such as the spine, the paraspinal regions, and the abdomen. The result is that numerous areas connected to masses of nerve endings are stimulated.

A tingling sensation is a common reaction. As feedback from the nervous system is received by the device through the skin, a new signal is calibrated and sent. A sound is also actuated by the device as it receives and responds to this neural feedback. Advanced models also have a digital display output.

As the device is drawn over the specific skin regions by the practitioner, the skin surface is especially observed. Particularly important are areas of numbness and areas of stickiness, and a change in sound or in the digital numerical display. These areas may not necessarily be located in symptomatic (i.e., painful) areas, however. Known as asymmetries, these areas must be given special treatment emphasis.

It's that simple. A normal treatment session lasts about 20 to 30 minutes, but the effects are deep and far-reaching.

Chronic problems can often be corrected in up to six weeks of SCENAR treatment, usually with long-lasting effect. Acute problems are often resolved and just take a couple of sessions, though sometimes they require treatment more than once daily.

Statistics from multiple studies conclude that SCENAR treatment is effective in 80 percent of cases, with full recovery occuring in two out of three patients, and significant improvement and healing occuring in the final one of three. These statistics are based on 50,000 clinical cases from 3,000 doctors using the SCENAR device in all parts of Russia, and later substantiated by physicians in other parts of the world.

What's more, there are virtually no contraindications for the use of SCENAR, the most notable exception being people with heart pacemakers. Also, after some 30 years of clinical use, SCENAR therapy exhibits no negative side effects.

Applications in Sports Medicine

While SCENAR is extraordinarily effective in treating various illnesses, it is particularly useful in sports medicine applications.

In fact, during the 2000 Olympic Games in Australia, SCENAR came to be known as Russia's secret weapon, aiding Russian athletes in recovering from serious injury and often allowing them to continue to compete.

Athletes of all types — runners, weight lifters, tennis players, golfers, soccer players, rugby players, swimmers, gymnasts — can all benefit from SCENAR therapy, both in treating injuries common to their sport as well as in helping to optimize performance.

In fact, rugby champion Dan Luger purchased a SCENAR device in 1999 to address problems with his knees, pelvis, and even a fractured eye socket.

Pain, cramping, soft tissue injuries, contusions, fractures, tendon pulls, and ligament tears are common conditions readily treatable by SCENAR therapy. Treatment after an event has also proven to be effective in recovering from tired and aching muscles, physical exhaustion, and other postevent aches and pains.

In Conclusion

SCENAR treatment is an effective and valuable therapy that can be used as a stand-alone treatment or in complement with other therapeutic approaches.

What's astonishing is that this one treatment is so broad in its effectiveness. It can be used to treat a torn ligament or pulled tendon in one patient, heart and vascular problems in another, arthritic knees in a third, a burn in yet another, or to correct sleeplessness, appetite, behavioral problems, learning ability, memory, sexual function, and overall physical health in others.

The SCENAR device has been approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States as a biofeedback and electrical stimulation device, which also means therapy sessions can be billed to insurance companies. The SCENAR device has also been approved in England as a treatment for pain.

While there are several models available, they all fall into the three basic categories of a Home Model, an Advanced Model and a Practitioner model, and range in cost from US$350 to US$3,000.

Consumers should be aware that there are a number of knock-offs with dubious effectiveness. And of course, copycatting hardly supports continued research and clinical study. So caveat emptor — let the buyer beware!

The SCENAR device is a major advance in bioelectric medicine. It's like having a whole hospital in the palm of your hand.