Evaluation of Immediate Effects of an Electrical Massager on Stress Relaxation Using the Heart Rate Variability(HRV)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the short-term effects of electrical massager on stress-related parameters including heart rate variability (HRV), heart rate (HR) using the photoplethysmogram (PPG) signal with motion artifact correction. Twenty healthy subjects were randomly allocated to receive a 15-min section of three types ((1) resting mode (control group), (2) light massage mode, (3) strong massage mode). Results indicated that self-report, VAS (Visual Analog Scale) significantly decreased for two massage modes after massage except control group. In strong massage mode, it was associated with significant increases in HF, but significant decreases in LF and LH/HF ratio compared with the light massage mode. For all outcomes, similar changes were not observed in the control group. Also, the result founded that mean HR of all groups decrease. We conclude that electrical massager reduces perceived stress and improves adaptive autonomic response to stress in healthy adults.