Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41846592›Full record

Trial reportJournal of pain research2026

Tuina Alleviates Pain Associated with Lumbar Disc Herniation by Regulating Functional Connectivity Between Inferior Frontal Triangularis and Multiple Brain Networks: A Randomized Controlled fMRI Study.

Changzheng Jiang, Huanzhen Zhang, Xiaoyan Wu, Lanting Huang, Xuekun Zhou, Jian Lin, Lechun Chen, Hongye Huang, Shuijin Chen, Jinkun Zhang and 1 more

Abstract readCase ReportsClinical Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of pain research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–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

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Trial
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

11 authors.

Changzheng Jiang *Acupuncture and Moxibustion Tuina College, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0009-0002-9036-984X
Huanzhen Zhang *Department of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Xiaoyan Wu *School of Psychology, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Lanting HuangAcupuncture and Moxibustion Tuina College, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Xuekun ZhouAcupuncture and Moxibustion Tuina College, Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0009-0002-2735-6042
Jian LinDepartment of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Lechun ChenDepartment of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Hongye HuangDepartment of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.ORCID 0009-0005-1964-8995
Shuijin ChenDepartment of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Jinkun ZhangSchool of Psychology, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.
Zhigang LinDepartment of Tuina, Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, Fujian, People's Republic of China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Purpose: This study conducted a randomized controlled trial by analyzing resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) data to determine the mechanisms by which Tuina alleviates pain and modulates multiple brain networks in lumbar disc herniation (LDH) patients. Patients and Methods: This study included 38 healthy subjects and 76 LDH patients. LDH patients were randomly assigned into the test group (TG; n = 38) and control group (CG; n = 38). TG patients received 14 days of Tuina therapy, whereas CG patients received a combination of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and lumbar traction therapy. The primary outcome measure, simplified McGill Pain Questionnaire (SF-MPQ), was used to assess pain. Pain pressure threshold (PPT), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II), and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) were evaluated as secondary outcomes. Fractional amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (fALFF) and functional connectivity (FC) values were evaluated from the rs-fMRI data before and after treatment. Results: The SF-MPQ score significantly decreased in both TG subjects [-13.00 (-19.00, -9.00); Conclusion: Tuina effectively alleviates pain, lumbar dysfunction, and negative emotions in LDH patients by regulating the interactions between multiple neural networks in the brain, especially through the inferior frontal gyrus triangle area.

Indexed as

analgesiafunctional magnetic resonance imaginginferior frontal gyrus triangle arealumbar disc herniationresting-stateTuina

Identifiers

PMID41846592
PMCPMC12990911

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.