Fenghao Xu

Toyama Institute of Health, University of Toyama

Papers

Total Citations

143

H-Index

About

Fenghao Xu is a pioneering researcher at the intersection of traditional Ayurvedic medicine and modern psychoneuroimmunology, best known for developing a robotic system to scientifically study the ancient oil-dripping therapy known as Shirodhara. Their most cited work, "Psychoneuroimmunologic Effects of Ayurvedic Oil-Dripping Treatment" (65 citations), established a rigorous, randomized controlled protocol demonstrating that Shirodhara induces measurable psychoneuroimmunologic changes, including anxiolysis and altered states of consciousness. Xu further advanced this field by investigating the pharmaco-physio-psychologic effects of lavender essential oil in Shirodhara (41 citations), revealing how specific oils modulate physiological and psychological responses. A hallmark of Xu’s career is the invention of a healing robot that delivers computerized, reproducible Shirodhara treatments (37 citations), solving the critical problem of standardization in Oriental medicine physiotherapy. This innovation bridges ancient healing traditions with precision engineering, enabling reproducible scientific inquiry. Xu’s work has profound implications for integrative medicine, demonstrating how traditional therapies can be validated through modern technology, and has inspired new directions in mind-body research and therapeutic robotics.