[Effects of acupuncture at Shenmen (HT7) or Taiyuan (LU9) on P3a and P3b of event-related potentials in healthy young adults].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the effects of manual acupuncture at Shenmen (HT7) or Taiyuan (LU9) on the attention function of the brain, and to lay an experimental foundation for researching brain function and integration mechanisms of the human brain in relation to acupuncture stimulation.

METHODS

Ten healthy young college students were selected as experimental subjects. P3a and P3b potentials were induced by novel stimulation and target stimulation with vision and were observed using Neuroscan event-related potentials system at time windows of ms 330-430 or 400-600 ms for observing the change of intensity distribution of P300 after manual acupuncture at HT7 or LU9.

RESULTS

The amplitude of P3a and P3b decreased significantly after manual acupuncture at HT7 or LU9, but the degree of decreases affected by the acupoints was different. The decrease of the amplitude of P3a due to acupuncture at HT7 was more significant than acupuncture at LU9 (P<0.05).

CONCLUSION

The attention function of the brain is affected by manual acupuncture at HT7 or LU9 and manual acupuncture at HT7 has a greater influence on the attention function of the brain.