BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There have been many claims for the treatment of various illnesses and conditions using magnetic field therapy. In general the claimed benefits and suggested procedures have been vague, with unspecific health benefits from the application of static or dynamic magnetic fields (T. Barker Beng Electricitv, Magnetism and the Body: Some Uses and Abuses, J. Roy. Soc. Health 1994: vol. 114 (2): 91-97).

For the correction of heart activity, European Patent number 0496401 describes a device which generates electric pulses of a specific frequency to stimulate the muscles and nerves of the heart. The correction of heart rate is achieved due to the synchronization of the heart muscles with an external oscillator of the device. However, such device requires surgical intervention to place it next to the heart.

Various devices are known treating physiological conditions using oscillating magnetic fields. For example, German Patent number 4231888 teaches the use of magnetic field impulses having a frequency of 4-20 Hz for curing sexual disorders and/or improving male sexual potency.

Another magnetotherapeutic method and device is taught in Ukrainian Patent number 12565 wherein a patient is exposed to damped trains of magnetic oscillations with a period of 20-1100 nanoseconds and a field intensity between 0.12 to 18 microTesla (uT) and a decrement of damping of at least 0.05. The repetition rate between these trains is chosen depending upon the organ or organs being treated.

However, the above references do not teach a magnetotherapeutic method for improving a patient's immune system. Moreover, since the application of magnetotherapy for a particular condition is dependent upon the specific field intensity and frequency, the above references do not suggest a use of such treatment for ameliorating immune deficiencies.

Therefore, there exists a need for an effective magnetotherapeutic method for the safe and non-intrusive treatment of immune system disorders.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides, in one embodiment, a method for treating the immune system of a patient wherein the patient is exposed to damped trains of magnetic oscillations with a period 20-1100 nanoseconds and an intensity from about 0.12 to about 18 microTesla and a decrement of damping of at least 0.05 wherein the improvement comprises applying magnetic oscillations having a frequency of from about 34 Hz to about 36 Hz.

The invention also provides a device for treating the immune system comprising a housing containing a pulse generator, a pulse former, and an emitter coil wherein an output from the pulse generator is connected to an input of the pulse former and an output from the pulse former drives the emitter coil, and wherein the pulse generator operates at a frequency from about 34 to about 36 Hz.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS These and other features of the preferred embodiments of the invention will become more apparent in the following detailed description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein like elements are indicated with like numerals and wherein: Figure 1 shows a schematic of the magnetotherapeutic device in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 2 is a circuit diagram for a preferred embodiment of invention.

Figure 3 illustrates a form of magnetic impulses formed with the magnetotherapeutic device of Figure 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As illustrated in Figure 1, a preferred embodiment of the device is shown schematically at 100. The device comprises an adjustable timing or pulse generator 10 which produces impulses at a desired frequency in the range of 34 to 36 Hz. The device also includes a pulse former 20, which forms impulses of current following the waveform of the generator, and an emitter coil 30.

Figure 2 illustrates a circuit diagram for the device of Figure 1. As shown, the pulse generator 10 includes resistors 11,14 and 16, capacitors 12 and 15, a pnp transistor 13, and a

npn transistor 17. Further, the pulse former 20 comprises a resistor 21, a pnp transistor 22, and a capacitor 23. The emitter coil 30 comprises, a flat coil 32, and a capacitor 31.

The power supply for the device is provided with positive and negative wires Vc and -Vc.

Resistor 11 is located between a base of transistor 17 (the emitter of which is connected to the negative wire-Vc of the power supply) and the positive wire Vc of the power supply. The emitter of transistor 13 is connected to the positive wire Vc, while the collector of transistor 13 is connected through capacitor 12 to the base of transistor 17 (the collector of which is connected through resistor 14 to a collector of the transistor 13). The base of transistor 13 is connected through a parallel concluded capacitor 15 and resistor 16 to the collector of transistor 17, and forms the output of the generator 10.

The output from generator 10 is connected to one pin of capacitor 23 which forms the input for the pulse former 20. The other pin of capacitor 23 is connected to the base of transistor 22. The base of transistor 22 is also connected to the positive wire Vc through resistor 21. The emitter of transistor 22 is directly connected to the positive wire Vc. The collector of transistor 22 forms the output of pulse former 20.

The output of the pulse former 20 forms the input of the emitter coil 30 by a connection to a first pin of flat coil 32, the second pin of which is connected to the negative wire-Vc of the power supply. A capacitor 31 is provided between the first pin of the flat coil 32 and positive wire Vc of the power supply.

The output signal of the magnetotherapeutic device of the present invention is illustrated in Figure 3, where T is the repetition period of trains of magnetic impulses and p is the repetition of the magnetic impulses in the train. The ratio of the amplitudes of the impulses within the train, alb, is related to the damping factor d of the oscillations of the magnetic field in the trains according to the following equation: d = ln () where a is the intensity of magnetic field formed by the device.

In operation, the device of the present invention functions as follows. Timing generator 10 produces impulses at a repetition rate of 27.8 to 29.5 milliseconds, or a frequency of 34 to 36 Hz. Any suitable oscillator circuit may be used such as that described above. The frequency of the pulses depends on the values of the resistors 11 and 16 and capacitors 12 and 14 at any given voltage of the power supply. The output signal of timing generator 10 is connected to the input of pulse former 20, which produces current impulses at

its output. This may be any circuit that produces short duration pulses from either the positive or negative edge of the timing generator waveform. It may be, for example, a mono- stable multi-vibrator or may be as simple as a capacitor in series with the timing generator signal. In the preferred embodiment, the circuit is as shown in Figure 2 and comprises a capacitor 23 in the series with a resistor 21. The current impulse is formed in the collector of transistor 22.

The output of pulse former 20 drives emitter coil 30, which transforms the electrical impulses into an electromagnetic field. Any flat coil can be used for emitter 30. The inductance of the flat emitter coil 32 and capacitance of the capacitor 31 forms a resonant circuit at a frequency between 0.5 and 27 MHz. Each pulse of current from pulse former 20 thus produces a train of damped oscillations at the resonant frequency of the emitter coil, as illustrated in Figure 3. The desired field strength of the emitted magnetic component of the electromagnetic field is reached by using a suitable number of turns in the emitter coil, and the value of the current impulses produced with former 20. The frequency and damping of the emitted electromagnetic waves depends on the inductance, capacitance and Q factor of the coil. In the preferred embodiment the Q factor of the coil is chosen to produce damped oscillations with a decrement of damping of no less than 0.05.

The described magnetotherapeutic device for improving the immune system produces magnetic field impulses with an amplitude in the preferred range of 0.12-18 microTesla and a preferred frequency range of 34-36 Hz. The choice of this frequency range of magnetic field impulses is a preferred embodiment of the invention, which has produced positive results in clinical trials. The described device is used over a period of 3 weeks by the patient and for at least 4 hours each day. The location of the device from the region of the body being treated is proportional to the field strength emitted by the device. In the case of the present invention, devices having the characteristics described above should preferably be placed within 20cm from the adrenal glands.

As mentioned above, the preferred field strength for the devices is in the range from about 0.12 to about 18 microTesla (, uT). Field strengths below this range would be too weak to be of any effect and field strengths above this range may be unsafe.

The velocity of change of the magnetic field of the oscillations depends with repetition range and intensity of this oscillation only, and could be provided in any desirable range. The velocity is defined as the rate of change of the magnetic field over time. A desirable range for this velocity is known from the prior art (e. g. German Patent number

4231888), and would therefore be apparent to a person skilled in the art. Accordingly, it would be apparent that the result of multiplication of the amplitude of the formed magnetic field with the cycled frequency of the oscillations of the magnetic field should be no less then 35 Tesla/sec.

The inventors believe that the observed curative benefits of the present invention are due to the influence of magnetic field impulses of a specific frequency on certain cells within the adrenal glands, which, due to the disease, have ceased to function normally. A frequency of approximately 34-36 Hz, and most preferably 35 Hz, appears to be most effective in restoring normal function to these cells.

Although the invention has been described the reference to certain specific embodiments various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as outlined in the claims appended hereto.