The Apparatus for Meridian Identification (AMI): A promising electrodermal device for Traditional Chinese Medicine and biofield science. Part II

This is the second part of a research work to study the reliability of the Apparatus for Meridian Identification (AMI), an electrodermal device that measures the response of acupuncture points (acupoints) located on the tips of fingers and toes. In the first part, the literature reviews on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and the AMI, as well as the functioning of the device, were discussed. In this second part, previous reliability studies on acupoint electrodermal devices are reviewed, reporting their positive findings, and an original experiment is presented, to study the performance of the AMI. The measurement variability and working of this device were investigated, evaluating its capacity to assess human bioenergetics and Chi energy activity throughout the body meridians. The experiment involved 100 healthy participants, who were measured 5 times in the same psychophysical condition: In the analysis, it was determined whether the AMI could provide informative, meaningful, and repeatable assessments of the participants’ biofield and subtle energy anatomy, in accordance with TCM principles. Results showed that the AMI parameters return accurate and valuable information about the human bioenergetic system and psychophysical status. Among the results, it was found that the Chi energy relationships between Yin and Yang meridians are consistent with those predicted by TCM, thus validating this millenary philosophy and practice. This trend is best reflected in the acupoint Before-Polarization (BP) current, compared to other electrodermal parameters, revealing its importance for subtle energy research. Considering their reliability, scientific investigations and clinical applications with acupoint electrodermal devices are encouraged.