A Comparative Study of SPECT Cerebral Functional Imaging on Needling in the Acupoint Waiguan(SJ5) and a Sham Acupoint

Objective:The effects of needling in Waiguan(SJ 5) and needling in a sham point in young healthy volunteers were observed by SPECT cerebral functional imaging in order to prove the hypothesis of Acupoint-specific has close relationship with the brain.Method:Eighteen young healthy volunteers were divided into 3 groups randomly and received the different timulations of non-procession,needling in SJ5 and needling in a sham poiont.In the mean time,GE Millennium MG SPECT was used to make a cerebral scan and the collected pictures were analyzed by SPM2.Results:Compared with the non-procession group,needling in SJ5 could significantly activate the areas of BA 3,2,20,46 and putamen,caudate body and insula,while needling in a sham point could significantly activate the areas of BA10,18,19,30,21,9,8,6 and 22.The comparision of needling in SJ5 and the sham point showed there were some deactivated areas of BA10,9,8,18,19,2,22,30 and cerebellar tonsil.Conclusion:Needling has a positive effect on the regional cerebral blood flow and there is a difference between needling in the true point(SJ5) and the sham point proved by the deactive areas in the brain.