Many of those involved in neuromodulation say that stimulation began in Mesopotamia with the use of the electric eel to treat foot pain and headache. The ancient history of this discipline is more complex and interesting than simplified version, however.

In Greece, the interest in currents and electrical properties was vast. The Greeks coined the word elektron to describe amber, a fossilized resin used to create sparks, and later this term became the modern root of the word electricity. Greek physicians were the initial users of current to treat illness, and along with the Mesopotamians, they were credited with the initial sparks that started what is now known as neurostimulation. The first documented use involved the release of electrically charged torpedo fish in clinical footbaths from the Nile to treat prolonged headache. Egyptian physicians called the electric fish “Thunderer of the Nile.” The use of electricity continued to develop in both Greece and Rome, and in some communities it was more common than the use of herbs and other medicinal treatments.

After well-documented use of electrical current in the classical age, the stage went silent for innovation for many centuries. This period has been referred to as the “dark ages” of neuromodulation history. Some use of these concepts may have been made, but documentation was poor, so the ability to teach new pupils and pass on knowledge seemed to evaporate. As time progressed, however, some individuals stepped up to move the field forward:

Benjamin Franklin is important to neuromodulation for two reasons: The development of the lightening rod was an early practical use of electricity, and Franklin was also the first American to use neurostimulation. Franklin’s interest in electrical current peaked in 1756, after he learned about the work of Leopoldo Caldani, who reported that discharging a Leyden jar in the vicinity of a mounted and dissected frog’s leg could cause it to twitch. Many scientists touted electricity as a miracle cure for many diseases after the presentation of Caldani’s work. Especially popular was the hypothesis that paralysis might be cured by this method. Franklin did his own experiments on painful conditions. After discovering that his subjects experienced more discomfort than pain relief, he concluded that these claims were inflated. Unfortunately for Franklin’s volunteers, many of whom were desperate and hopeless people, he used high-voltage stimulation that caused injury, pain, and tissue burns.