Trial reportCerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)2014
The brain circuitry mediating antipruritic effects of acupuncture.
Trial report in Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991), 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
35 citing papers in PubMed, 92 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of acupuncture treatment in patients with mild to moderate atopic dermatitis: a randomized, participant- and assessor-blind sham-controlled trial.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2021Trial
- Butorphanol suppression of histamine itch is mediated by nucleus accumbens and septal nuclei: a pharmacological fMRI study.The Journal of investigative dermatology · 2015Trial
- Pathophysiologic Mechanisms and Targeted Treatments Associated with the Nervous System in Cutaneous Allergic Diseases.Clinical reviews in allergy & immunology · 2025Review
- The immediate effect of acupuncture on brain function in patients with chronic itch: a study protocol for an fNIRS investigation.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Efficacy evaluation of acupuncture combined with pricking blood therapy in the treatment of chronic spontaneous urticaria: a randomized controlled trial.American journal of translational research · 2024Article
- Severe Itch Related to Hard Workload Treated with Acupuncture: Unexpected Results - A Case report.Complementary medicine research · 2024Article
- Role of GRPR in Acupuncture Intervention in the "Itch-scratch Vicious Cycle" Spinal Circuit of Chronic Pruritus.Chinese medicine · 2023Review
- Treatment Options for Troublesome Itch.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- Comparative Study of Classical and Alternative Therapy in Dogs with Allergies.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2022Article
- Functional connectivity impairment of thalamus-cerebellum-scratching neural circuits in pruritus of chronic spontaneous urticaria.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2022Article
- Characteristics, mechanism, and management of pain in atopic dermatitis: A literature review.Clinical and translational allergy · 2021Review
- Acupuncture for the Treatment of Itch: Literature Review and Future Perspectives.Medical acupuncture · 2021Article
- Neural Oscillation Associated with Contagious Itch in Patients with Atopic Dermatitis.Brain sciences · 2021Article
- Acupuncture for the Treatment of Itch: Peripheral and Central Mechanisms.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2021Review
- Itch Matrixes.Frontiers in medicine · 2021Article
- Emerging Therapeutic Options for Chronic Pruritus.American journal of clinical dermatology · 2020Review
- Acupuncture for patients with chronic pruritus: protocol of a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ open · 2020Article
- Current Tracking on Effectiveness and Mechanisms of Acupuncture Therapy: A Literature Review of High-Quality Studies.Chinese journal of integrative medicine · 2020Review
- The Functional Network Processing Acute Electrical Itch Stimuli in Humans.Frontiers in physiology · 2019Article
- Acupuncture Treatment for Symptom Management in Atopic Dermatitis: A Study Protocol for a Randomized, Participant- and Assessor-Blind, Sham-Controlled Trial.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Itch is an aversive sensory experience and while systemic therapies, such as acupuncture, have shown promise in alleviating itch in patients suffering from chronic itch, their antipruritic mechanisms are unknown. As several lines of evidence implicate brain-focused mechanisms, we applied functional magnetic resonance imaging and our validated temperature-modulation itch model to evaluate the underlying brain circuitry supporting allergen-induced itch reduction in atopic dermatitis patients by acupuncture, antihistamine, and respective placebo treatments. Brain response to allergen itch demonstrated phase dependency. During an increasing itch phase, activation was localized in anterior insula and striatum, regions associated with salience/interoception and motivation processing. Once itch reached peak plateau, robust activation was noted in prefrontal cognitive and premotor areas. Acupuncture reduced itch and itch-evoked activation in the insula, putamen, and premotor and prefrontal cortical areas. Neither itch sensation nor itch-evoked brain response was altered following antihistamine or placebo acupuncture. Greater itch reduction following acupuncture was associated with greater reduction in putamen response, a region implicated in motivation and habitual behavior underlying the urge to scratch, specifically implicating this region in acupuncture's antipruritic effects. Understanding brain circuitry underlying itch reduction following acupuncture and related neuromodulatory therapies will significantly impact the development and applicability of novel therapies to reduce an itch.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.