Article · Wikipedia archive · Last revised Jun 24, 2026

Faradic battery

A Faradic battery was a device used in 19th and early 20th century medicine. The name of the device is associated both with Michael Faraday and Luigi Galvani. It was designed to create a mild electric shock that was thought to be therapeutic, to assist with ailments around nerve sensitivity within muscles and bones. Many machines were portable for use at a doctor's office or at home. Allegedly of little actual benefit and providing more of a placebo effect.

Last revised
Jun 24, 2026
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A portable Faradic battery by Philip Harris & Co. from 1913 source ↗

A Faradic battery (or Faradic stimulator, or galvanic battery) was a device used in 19th and early 20th century medicine. The name of the device is associated both with Michael Faraday and Luigi Galvani. It was designed to create a mild electric shock that was thought to be therapeutic, to assist with ailments around nerve sensitivity within muscles and bones. Many machines were portable for use at a doctor's office or at home. Allegedly of little actual benefit and providing more of a placebo effect.1

See also

See also

References

References

Notes
Bibliography

Savage, B (1960). Practical electrotherapy for physiotherapists. London: Faber & Faber.