Cerebral Targeting of Acupuncture at Combined Acupoints in Treating Essential Hypertension: An Rs-fMRI Study and Curative Effect Evidence.

The study attempted to explore that the synergistic effect of acupoints combination is not a simple superposition of single acupoint's effect by comparing and analyzing the changes of blood pressure (BP), SF-36, and brain regions after acupuncture treatment. 47 patients were randomly divided into LR3+KI3 group, LR3 group, and KI3 group. Subjects received Rs-fMRI scan, BP measurement, and SF-36 questionnaires before and after treatment and short-term acupuncture treatment. After treatment, there were no significant differences in BP and SF-36 among 3 groups, compared to the case before treatment, SBP of 3 groups decreased, and DBP significantly decreased while vitality and mental health significantly increased in LR3+KI3 group. Both number and scopes of changes of brain regions in LR3+KI3 group were the largest, which mainly included BAs 3, 4, 8, 19, 21, 24, 32, 44, and 45. In conclusion, acupuncture at LR3+KI3 may auxiliarily reduce BP and improve the vitality and mental health of patients, and the changes of brain regions were related to somatesthesia, movement, vision, audition, emotion and mood, language, memory, etc. BAs 4, 9, 10, 24, 31, 32, and 46 may be the targeting brain areas of acupuncture in assisting hypotension. It is suggested that acupoints combination of LR3+KI3 maybe generates a synergistic effect, and it is not simple sum of single acupoint effect.

Effect of acupuncture at HT7 on heart rate variability: an exploratory study.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the effect of acupuncture at HT7 on heart rate variability (HRV) in healthy volunteers. METHODS: 120 subjects were divided into four groups using a random number table. The following groups of acupuncture interventions were used: HT7 verum acupuncture; HT7 non-penetrating sham acupuncture; acupuncture at a sham point; and no acupuncture. HRV was recorded 10 min before, during and after each stimulation using an Actiheart ECG recorder. RESULTS: The HT7 verum acupuncture group had higher very-low frequency, low frequency and high frequency components of HRV compared with the control groups during but not after acupuncture. The HT7 verum acupuncture group also had higher SD of normal intervals compared with the sham needling and no acupuncture control groups. CONCLUSIONS: Our preliminary study suggests, subject to limitations, that acupuncture at HT7 could affect cardiac autonomic neural regulation in healthy subjects, manifest as increased HRV, most likely via the parasympathetic system. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ChiCTR-TRC-08000302.

Association of auricular pressing and heart rate variability in pre-exam anxiety students.

A total of 30 students scoring between 12 and 20 on the Test Anxiety Scale who had been exhibiting an anxious state > 24 hours, and 30 normal control students were recruited. Indices of heart rate variability were recorded using an Actiheart electrocardiogram recorder at 10 minutes before auricular pressing, in the first half of stimulation and in the second half of stimulation. The results revealed that the standard deviation of all normal to normal intervals and the root mean square of standard deviation of normal to normal intervals were significantly increased after stimulation. The heart rate variability triangular index, very-low-frequency power, low-frequency power, and the ratio of low-frequency to high-frequency power were increased to different degrees after stimulation. Compared with normal controls, the root mean square of standard deviation of normal to normal intervals was significantly increased in anxious students following auricular pressing. These results indicated that auricular pressing can elevate heart rate variability, especially the root mean square of standard deviation of normal to normal intervals in students with pre-exam anxiety.