Acupuncture at Waiguan (TE5) influences activation/deactivation of functional brain areas in ischemic stroke patients and healthy people: A functional MRI study

• Published in: Neural regeneration research Vol. 8; no. 3; pp. 226 - 232
• Main Authors: Chen, Junqi, Huang, Yong, Lai, Xinsheng, Tang, Chunzhi, Yang, Junjun, Chen, Hua, Zeng, Tongjun, Wu, Junxian, Qu, Shanshan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd 25.01.2013; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd; College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, Guangdong Province, China%College of Acupuncture and Manipulation, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou 510405, Guangdong Province, China%College of Biomedical Engineering, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510515, Guangdong Province, China%The First People's Hospital of Shunde, Foshan 528300, Guangdong Province, China%Department of Acupuncture, Shantou Central Hospital, Shantou 515031, Guangdong Province, China; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt Ltd
• Subjects: Acupuncture; Brain; Care and treatment; Eating behavior; Experiments; Health aspects; Hemophilia; Localization of functions; Magnetic resonance imaging; Observations; Physiology; Research and Report : Acupuncture and Moxibustion and Neural Regeneration; Software packages; Stroke; Stroke (Disease); Studies; China; acupuncture; functional MRI; neural regeneration; motion brain areas; neuroregeneration; grants-supported paper; photographs-containing paper; specificity of acupoints; Waiguan (TE5); ischemic stroke; acupuncture and moxibustion; cerebral function imaging
• ISSN: 1673-5374; 1876-7958
• DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1673-5374.2013.03.004

In the present study, 10 patients with ischemic stroke in the left hemisphere and six healthy controls were subjected to acupuncture at right Waiguan (TE5). In ischemic stroke subjects, functional MRI showed enhanced activation in Broadmann areas 5, 6, 7, 18, 19, 24, 32, the hypothalamic inferior lobe, the mamillary body, and the ventral posterolateral nucleus of the left hemisphere, and Broadmann areas 4, 6, 7, 18, 19 and 32 of the right hemisphere, but attenuated activation of Broadmann area 13, the hypothalamic inferior lobe, the posterior lobe of the tonsil of cerebellum, and the culmen of the anterior lobe of hypophysis, in the left hemisphere and Broadmann area 13 in the right hemisphere. In ischemic stroke subjects, a number of deactivated brain areas were enhanced, including Broadmann areas 6, 11, 20, 22, 37, and 47, the culmen of the anterior lobe of hypophysis, alae lingulae cerebella, and the posterior lobe of the tonsil of cerebellum of the left hemisphere, and Broadmann areas 8, 37, 45 and 47, the culmen of the anterior lobe of hypophysis, pars tuberalis adenohypophyseos, inferior border of lentiform nucleus, lateral globus pallidus, inferior temporal gyrus, and the parahippocampal gyrus of the right hemisphere. These subjects also exhibited attenuation of a number of deactivated brain areas, including Broadmann area 7. These data suggest that acupuncture at Waiguan specifically alters brain function in regions associated with sensation, vision, and motion in ischemic stroke patients. By contrast, in normal individuals, acupuncture at Waiguan generally activates brain areas associated with insomnia and other functions.