ReviewFrontiers in neurology2024
Neural circuit mechanisms of acupuncture effect: where are we now?
Review in Frontiers in neurology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 17 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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
17 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The efficacy of acupuncture for depression-associated chronic pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Connectomic Mapping of Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: Neural Circuitries Identified Through a Systematic Review and ALE Meta-Analysis.Neural plasticity · 2026Pooled it
- The efficacy of acupuncture for tension-type headache: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of oral & facial pain and headache · 2025Pooled it
- Efficacy of various acupuncture modalities on alleviating symptoms in Parkinson's disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Neurological sciences : official journal of the Italian Neurological Society and of the Italian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology · 2025Pooled it
- Gut microbiota contributes to the therapeutic effect of acupuncture in atopic dermatitis.Microbiology spectrum · 2026Article
- Efficacy and Safety of Acupuncture for Anxiety Disorders in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Psychiatry investigation · 2026Article
- Electroacupuncture improves psychosocial outcomes in rectal cancer patients with bowel dysfunction.World journal of psychiatry · 2026Article
- Potential mechanisms of acupuncture in regulating neuroinflammation and central sensitization in chronic pain: a narrative review of preclinical, clinical, and translational evidence.American journal of translational research · 2026Review
- Meridian-sinew physical therapy modulates regional brain function and neurotransmitter spatial correlations in healthy volunteers: a neuroimaging study.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026Article
- Metabolic and neuropathic outcomes following combined sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitor therapy and adjunctive acupuncture in obese patients with diabetic neuropathy: a case series.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Data Mining-Based Analysis of Acupoint Selection Patterns in Acupuncture Treatment for Lumbar Disc Herniation.Journal of pain research · 2026Review
- Aerobic exercise versus acupuncture as adjuncts to acetylcholinesterase inhibitors in Alzheimer's disease: a systematic review and Bayesian network meta-analysis.American journal of clinical and experimental immunology · 2026Review
- Traditional Korean Medicine Services and Its Association with Knee Surgery and Opioid Use in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Nationwide Retrospective Study in Korea.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Role of Hypothalamus in Acupuncture's Effects.Brain sciences · 2025Review
- Applying Target Trial Emulation to Evaluate Acupuncture Combined with Rehabilitation for Autism Spectrum Disorder in Children: A Retrospective Single-Center Real-World Protocol.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2025Article
- Role of Neural Circuits in Cognitive Impairment.Neurochemical research · 2024Review
- EEG microstate responses of migraine patients to transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation.Frontiers in neurologyArticle
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Recently, there has been increasing attention on the impact of acupuncture on the dysregulated neural circuits in different disease. This has led to new understandings of how acupuncture works. This review presents a comprehensive analysis of research that have examined the impact of acupuncture on abnormal neural circuits associated with pain, anxiety, Parkinson's disease, addiction disorders, cognitive problems, and gastrointestinal disorders. These studies have shown that acupuncture's therapeutic effects are mediated by specific brain areas and neurons involved in neural circuit mechanisms, emphasising its wide-ranging influence. The positive impacts of acupuncture can be ascribed to its ability to modify the functioning of neurocircuits in various physiological conditions. Nevertheless, contemporary studies on acupuncture neural circuits frequently overlook the comprehensive circuit mechanism including the periphery, central nervous system, and target organ. Additionally, the scope of diseases studied is restricted. Future study should focus on broadening the range of diseases studied and exploring the neural circuit mechanisms of these diseases in depth in order to enhance our understanding of acupuncture's neurobiological impacts.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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.