The Key Laboratory of Biomedical Information Engineering, Ministry of Education, Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Life Science and Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710049, China.
Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2013;2013:812568. doi: 10.1155/2013/812568. Epub 2013 May 14.
Acupuncture is currently gaining popularity as an important modality of alternative and complementary medicine in the western world. Modern neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography, and magnetoencephalography open a window into the neurobiological foundations of acupuncture. In this review, we have summarized evidence derived from neuroimaging studies and tried to elucidate both neurophysiological correlates and key experimental factors involving acupuncture. Converging evidence focusing on acute effects of acupuncture has revealed significant modulatory activities at widespread cerebrocerebellar brain regions. Given the delayed effect of acupuncture, block-designed analysis may produce bias, and acupuncture shared a common feature that identified voxels that coded the temporal dimension for which multiple levels of their dynamic activities in concert cause the processing of acupuncture. Expectation in acupuncture treatment has a physiological effect on the brain network, which may be heterogeneous from acupuncture mechanism. "Deqi" response, bearing clinical relevance and association with distinct nerve fibers, has the specific neurophysiology foundation reflected by neural responses to acupuncture stimuli. The type of sham treatment chosen is dependent on the research question asked and the type of acupuncture treatment to be tested. Due to the complexities of the therapeutic mechanisms of acupuncture, using multiple controls is an optimal choice.
针灸作为西方替代和补充医学的重要手段，目前越来越受到关注。现代神经影像学技术，如功能磁共振成像、正电子发射断层扫描和脑磁图，为针灸的神经生物学基础研究打开了一扇窗户。在这篇综述中，我们总结了神经影像学研究的证据，并试图阐明涉及针灸的神经生理学相关性和关键实验因素。集中于针灸急性效应的一致性证据显示，广泛的脑-小脑脑区存在显著的调节活性。鉴于针灸的延迟效应，块设计分析可能会产生偏差，而针灸有一个共同的特征，即识别编码时间维度的体素，多个水平的动态活动协同作用导致针灸的处理。针灸治疗中的期望对大脑网络有生理影响，这可能与针灸机制不同。“得气”反应具有临床相关性，并与独特的神经纤维相关联，其神经生理学基础反映在对针灸刺激的神经反应上。选择的假治疗类型取决于要提出的研究问题和要测试的针灸治疗类型。由于针灸治疗机制的复杂性，使用多种对照是最佳选择。
