Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39099634›Full record

SynthesisFrontiers in neuroscience2024

Immediate and long-term brain activation of acupuncture on ischemic stroke patients: an ALE meta-analysis of fMRI studies.

Yuan Zhang, Hai Lu, Xuesong Ren, Junfeng Zhang, Yu Wang, Chunhong Zhang, Xiaofeng Zhao

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Frontiers in neuroscience, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Yuan ZhangDepartment of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
Hai LuDepartment of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China.
Xuesong RenDepartment of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
Junfeng ZhangDepartment of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
Yu WangDepartment of Rehabilitation, Second Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.
Chunhong ZhangDepartment of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Baoan Pure Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment Hospital, Shenzhen, China.
Xiaofeng ZhaoDepartment of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, First Teaching Hospital of Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tianjin, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Acupuncture, as an alternative and complementary therapy recommended by the World Health Organization for stroke treatment, holds potential in ameliorating neurofunctional deficits induced by ischemic stroke (IS). Understanding the immediate and long-term effects of acupuncture and their interrelation would contribute to a better comprehension of the mechanisms underlying acupuncture efficacy. Methods: Activation likelihood estimation (ALE) meta-analysis was used to analyze the brain activation patterns reported in 21 relevant functional neuroimaging studies. Among these studies, 12 focused on the immediate brain activation and 9 on the long-term activation. Single dataset analysis were employed to identify both immediate and long-term brain activation of acupuncture treatment in IS patients, while contrast and conjunction analysis were utilized to explore distinctions and connections between the two. Results: According to the ALE analysis, immediately after acupuncture treatment, IS patients exhibited an enhanced cluster centered around the right precuneus (PCUN) and a reduced cluster centered on the left middle frontal gyrus (MFG). After long-term acupuncture treatment, IS patients showed an enhanced cluster in the left PCUN, along with two reduced clusters in the right insula (INS) and hippocampus (HIP), respectively. Additionally, in comparison to long-term acupuncture treatment, the right angular gyrus (ANG) demonstrated higher ALE scores immediately after acupuncture, whereas long-term acupuncture resulted in higher scores in the left superior parietal gyrus (SPG). The intersecting cluster activated by both of them was located in the left cuneus (CUN). Conclusion: The findings provide initial insights into both the immediate and long-term brain activation patterns of acupuncture treatment for IS, as well as the intricate interplay between them. Both immediate and long-term acupuncture treatments showed distinct patterns of brain activation, with the left CUN emerging as a crucial regulatory region in their association. Systematic Review Registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/, CRD42023480834.

Indexed as

activation likelihood estimationacupuncturefunctional MRIischemic strokemeta analysis

Identifiers

PMID39099634
PMCPMC11294246

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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.