Non-Pharmacologic Treatment of Shingles
by Carolyn McMakin, MA, DC
 In unpublished anecdotal reports of Frequency Specific Microcurrent
(FSM) treatments during the last twelve years, one frequency combination has been observed
consistently to eliminate the pain and shorten the course of shingles. That frequency
combination—230 Hz on one channel and 430 Hz on the second channel—applied
simultaneously using 150 microamps alternating DC current having a ramped square wave
pulse was ultimately successful on this patient’s pain and lesions.
Case Report
The patient was an 85-year-old male who presented for treatment with Frequency Specific
Microcurrent (FSM) of low back pain caused by myofascial trigger points and degenerative
disc disease. The patient noted incidentally that he had a rash on the frontal portion of
his bald scalp which was diagnosed one week previously by his dermatologist as actinic
keratosis. He was applying a topical gel appropriate to that diagnosis and did not request
treatment for the rash during this appointment. He returned two days later complaining of
increased pain on his scalp in the area of the rash, rated as a 7/10 on a 0-10 VAS scale,
and requested that the rash be treated with FSM appropriate for actinic keratosis since
treatment had been effective for his low back pain.1
The treatment protocol for actinic keratosis required that microamperage current from a
two channel microcurrent device be applied to the skin on his scalp. The current is
delivered using graphite conducting gloves with double pin connectors cemented to the back
so that one lead from each of two channels can be connected to each glove. One graphite
glove, connected to the positive leads from both channels of the microcurrent device, was
wrapped in warm moist fabric and placed on the patient’s upper back. The second
graphite glove, connected to the negative leads from both channels of the microcurrent
device, was wrapped in a warm moist face cloth and placed on the top of the patient’s
head so that it covered the area of the rash on the scalp (see Figure 2).
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— May 2010
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