The action of needling in acupoint therapy has to first be regulated and integrated by the brain,and then it affects the target organ and manifests its therapeutic effects,which is dependent on the specificity of the acupoints.The authors put forward the hypothesis of the "acupoint-related brain".Single-photon emission computed tomography was used to explore the activation of brain regions following true needling in true acupoint Waiguan (SJ 5),sham needling in true acupoint Waiguan,true needling in a sham point,and sham needling in a sham point.The relative specificity of Waiguan in normal persons was analyzed by observing changes in regional cerebral blood flow.Compared with the sham needling in true acupoint group and sham needling in the sham point group,acupuncture at Waiguan can activate brain regions controlling movement.Compared with true needling in the sham point group,acupuncture at Waiguan can also activate brain regions controlling movement.The results suggest that the specificity of needling at an acupoint is related to certain activated cerebral functional regions,which are associated with the clinical application of the acupoint.
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