The effect of biofeedback training usually depends on the frequency of training. However, the difflculty of usage, the weight, or the cost of the equipment used for the biofeedback sometimes prevents daily training. In the present study, the possibility of self regulation of heart rate decrease by the use of a simple wrist-watch-style heart rate monitor was investigated. This heart rate monitor is easy to use and to wear, and is light and inexpensive. But the visual biofeedback information of this heart rate monitor did not easily reduce the arousal level. In this study, twenty four subjects (eighteen males and six females) were assigned to one of three groups of equal numbers : the heart rate biofeedback with autogenic training group (A), the heart rate training group (B), and the non-feedback (control) group (C). Each training session to reduce of heart rates consisted of 10 min. of adaptation, and 12 sessions of 50 sec. of feedback per day, which was continued for six consecutive days. Pre- and post-voluntary control was tested, with no other feedback, just before and just after all training sessions. The results of this experiment showed that the autogenic training resulted in an effective decrease in heart rate on the beginning sessions. But subjects who acquired their own strategy during the biofeedback training showed accelerated decreases in heart rate. On the voluntary control test, measured with the simple wrist-watch-style heart rate monitor, groups A and B showed accelerated decreases in heart rate, whereas group C did not.

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In recent years the effect of biofeedback therapy for wirter's cramp has been evaluated in relation to reduction of EMG and improvement of symptoms, and reports on its effectiveness are being made. However, hardly any reports have been published in detail on the relationship between the clinical effect of biofeedback therapy and physiological responsivity. Biofeedback was conducted for writer's cramp using two-channel EMG of musculus extensor carpi radialis longus and musculus trapezius, and its clinical effect and physiological responsivity were studied. The results of our study showed a relatively high effective rate of 73.9%. In the patients with writer's cramp in whom EMG biofeedback was effective, the EMG was originally high and the symptoms were reflected in the EMG. Furthermore, in these patients, EMG could be reduced during the trial period and session period. In order the enhance the clinical effect, it was found that control of only the musculus extensor carpi radialis longus was insufficient and the propriety and effectiveness of two-channel biofeedback therapy were suggested. In the study of writer's cramp by clinical type, it was confirmed that our classified stiff-tremor type is a unique clinical type which shows a responsivity unlike those of other types. The clinical effect classified by clinical type was the highest for stiff type, followed in decreasing order by stiff-tremor type and tremor type. It was ineffective for dystonia type. However, it was ascertained that the responsivity of EMG classified by clinical effect was not dependent on clinical type. EMG used as index in the present study appropriately reflected the pathophysiology of writer's cramp patients with writing difficulty and when there was room for learning toward the objective direction and there was responsivity to biofeedback, EMG indicated the potential therapeutic effectiveness regardless of clinical type. Furthermore, it was considered possible to speculate the therapeutic effect by the initial EMG value on the first day of therapy and by its responsivity.

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In auditory alpha feedback training, each of the subjects reveals an individual character of conscious perception when he received the feedback information. The central nervous system superimpose on them willing or motivational drives and controls for initiating and sustaining alpha rhythm activity. It is considered that conscious perception and willing are significant factors to enhance the alpha activity. In our previous experiments, it is found that the feedback techniques which make the subject's emotion uneasy or impatient should be undesirable, and the subject should build up the willing to enhance alpha activity. We have studied about the relationship between subject's conscious perception when he received the feedback information and the alpha activity enhancement. Previously we published a paper on the relationship between feedback information quantity and conscious perception. In this paper, we noticed the influence of discrete feedback information on subject's conscious perception. For the discrete information, each subject's alpha activity was converted into the numerical percent time alpha. Our preliminary examination showed that the most appropriate sampling period in the experiments was two sec. Our study was consisted of the following three experiments, [Session1] self control without feedback, [Session2] feedback control using "integrated percent time alpha" technique, in this case the subject was given the feedback information only when his alpha amplitude was higher than the threshold level, [Session3] feedback control using the discrete information, the subject was given the information regardless of his alpha amplitude. Through the experiments, each of the subjects revealed an individual character of conscious perception. But the results qualitatively suggest that the discrete information decrease subject's uneasy or impatient emotion and so is useful for alpha activity enhancement.

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During the biofeedback training, some healthy subjects haven't their motivation to control the state of their health. In such a case, the effect of the training seems to different from one's participating volition in the training. It is know that conscious perception derived from some sensory input is signalled to the profrontal lobes. The pathway would be mainly through the hypothalamus and the limbic system. These systems modify with emotion the conscious perceptions and then superimpose on them motivational or participating volition. The volition is based on individual feedforward functions of the nervous system - innate and acquired. We have researched alpha activity enhancement using auditory alpha feedback. Subjects' conscious perception played an important role in alpha activity enhancement. To help forward on subjects' alpha activity enhancement when they received the feedback signals, we previously experimented the scoring feedback technique and derivative feedback technique. In this study, we noticed on the relationship between alpha activity enhancement and alpha feedback information quantity. In Session 1,we examined each subject's percent time alpha(PTA) base line and set up each threshold level. And then we used two feedback methods, the first, in Session 2,we gave each subject the feedback information only when his PTA is rising over the threshold level, and the second, in Session 3,only when it is descending below the level. The subject whose basic alpha amplitude is small or whose basic PTA is low comparatively can't be given so many information in Session 2,but can be given many information in Session 3. Otherwise the subject whose basic alpha amplitude is large or whose basic VFA is high can be given the information conversely. We divided the subjects in the above-mentioned two groups, and performed the experiments respectively. In thede experiments, we took notice the following problems, (1) the relationship between each subject's PTA and feedback information quantity, (2) each subject's emotional change when he received a rewarding feedback information(in Session 2) and otherwise a warning information(in Session 3), (3) the effect of participating volition to enhance alpha activity. The resuits of our experiments suggested as follows. (1) We have to use a feedback technique which give individually the subject adaptive feedback information in case of feedback training, (2) Most subjects feel comfortably when they received rewarding informations, and feel unpleasantly when they received warning informations. (3) Participating volition plays an very important role in alpha activity enhancement.

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A 41-year old man of Meige'4 syndrome with blepharosphsm was treated by Electromyogram-Biofeedback (EMG-BF) method. After determination of the level of baseline on forehead and both side muscle of circumocular, EMGBF was performed. According to the shaping method, started closing eye and sitting. The level of baseline EMG decreased from 1.0μV. After the 25th session, it kept under 0.3μV, and clinical symptoms disappeared. EMG-BF method is used for the purpose of direct muscle retraining. We consider that EMG-BF method is usefull for the treatment of Meige'4 syndrome.

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The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake forced a number of victims to take shelter at school building and in public parks. Although information was indispensable to help provide the victims with their necessities, communication systems had been virtually paralyzed during the period immediately following the quake. Indeed, even the computer networks including the Internet, supposedly the promising means of communication of the future, had also proved inadequate in the state of emergency. The situation could have been better, however, if there had been a reliable data base for emergency purposes established in advance. According to a health survey of the citizens of Nishinomiya-city, while the victims' physical and mental conditions were at their lowest in the first two to three months, they showed a remarkable recovery by six months after the disaster. Nevertheless, as a result of public health examination, the number of those requiring some kind of medical treatment greatly exceeded the regular annual average, demonstrating the adverse affects of the earthquake of people's overall well-being.

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I was in Okushiri Island when the Great Earthquake happened in July 1993,and I was also in Yubari county during the Great burst accident in a coal mine ten years ago. There were many children born without fathers because a hundred coal miners died. However the women of Yubari and Okushiri counties who suffered bereavement appeared not to feel too much loneliness, partly as a result of the strong emphasis these cultures place on family cohesion which offered the new mothers great social support. 1) I compared Yubari(Country) with Sapporo(City) for patients with climacteric syndrome(N = 64,30) , and for women giving birth(N = 1288,4775). The women in Yubari in both of the above categories were younger than in Sapporo City significantly. 2) The grief care cases(N = 38) were more stressful and more psychosomatic than other cases. 3) I had one case of a woman from Hakodate when the Great Earthquake happened about thirty years ago giving birth whose delivery pains suddenly disappeared. It was suggested that this was due to an increase of plasma adrenaline, a chemical which in our previou study hasbeen shown to exist in higher lebels in women who's husband are absentduring child birth.

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A Dosha-programme for victims was implemented in 4 refuges furing March to July after the 17 January 1995 Kobe eathquake. A DOSHA-hou includes relaxation and self-activation and being developing originally in JAPAN. 147 victims participated in that programme.

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