What is EDIS?

EDIS (ElectroDermal Imaging System) is a novel medical imaging system we are developing that measures the electrical activity on the surface of the body.

For over 300 years it has been know that the body produces electricity and as technology has advanced, it has been possible to detect this and for the medical profession to understand the significance of some of this. Over the time many specialised electrical tests have been developed and are routinely used to help diagnosis, for instance measuring the heart’s electrical activity.

We measure the electrical voltage on the surface of the skin at a large number of points and present the information spatially in colour coded form as a body surface map of electrical potentials. It is a passive system for measuring electrical characteristics of the body. Our electrodermal imaging system (EDIS) being passive relies totally on measuring the natural bioelectric voltages produced by the body and thus does not present an increased risk by introducing energy in to the subject under investigation like active imaging systems do.

The idea of spatial mapping rather than temporal presentation of bioelectrical voltages measured on the skin surface was first proposed in 1888 for studying the electric fields associated with the heart. Since that time several systems and techniques have been pioneered, each has limitations and targets specific organs, muscles and locations, they are not general.

Unlike current clinical electrophysiological tests that explore the dynamic changes of bioelectrical activity, EDIS visualises the static bioelectric potentials on the surface of the body and presents the results as an image of the actual patients or subjects body rather than a generic image. It is not limited or restricted to specific muscles or locations, in theory all whole exterior surface of the body can be accommodated.

EDIS ultimately offers potentially a system that is attractive clinically for a number of reasons. It may provide a general indication of the whole person’s well being, physically, mentally and emotionally. Or it could target specific anatomy and physiology. A single wandering or scanning electrode is used thus avoiding the excessive preparation time associated with techniques that use fixed electrodes. As the probe is automatically tracked there is no need for detailed anatomical and physiological knowledge and training when making a scan. This level of expertise is only required for post scanning analysis and review.

The body surface is currently divided in to 1cm squares, work progresses to reduce the area to 1mm2. The high number of measuring points means a more detailed map and accurate map can be created without special software techniques that effectively guess and fill in the blanks between measuring points.