Effects of acupuncture on brain function in patients with depression: A meta-analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging studies
Abstract
Background: Depression poses a major global health burden. Many patients exhibit treatment resistance or experience intolerable side effects with standard therapies. Acupuncture shows promise as an adjunctive therapy for depression, but its neurobiological mechanisms remain incompletely understood.
Methods: We conducted a coordinate-based meta-analysis to identify consistent patterns of acupuncture-induced neuroplastic changes in patients with major depressive disorder, quantified via resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging measures of regional homogeneity and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations (ALFF/fractional ALFF). We synthesized data from 7 randomized controlled trials involving 357 patients with major depressive disorder, comparing acupuncture-based interventions (manual acupuncture, electroacupuncture, or transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation) against sham acupuncture, conventional treatment, or treatment-as-usual. The seed-based d mapping with permutation of subject images algorithm was used for the imaging meta-analysis, and a leave-one-out sensitivity analysis was performed to assess the robustness of the pooled findings to intervention heterogeneity.
Results: Acupuncture induced significant regional homogeneity /ALFF increases within the right cingulum and right caudate nucleus. In contrast, conventional treatments primarily increased activity in the left hippocampus and right middle occipital gyrus. Meta-regression linked clinical…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a meta-analysis, done in people. Its evidence level is 1 of 5 (Highest · pooled evidence). Pooled evidence from several studies sits at the top of the evidence pyramid. Reported size: 357 participants or records.
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