Effectiveness of YNSA Acupuncture on Brain Networks

Although acupuncture has been used in China and Japan for over 2000 years, it has only become increasingly important in Western medicine in the last few decades. A special form of acupuncture is "Yamamoto's New Skull Acupuncture" (YNSA), which was developed by Toshikatsu Yamamoto. Here, the needling is limited to the skull.

Acupuncture is a safe and almost painless procedure that is usually well tolerated. One indication might be the therapy of neurological diseases. Schockert and colleagues examined the effectiveness of YNSA in a placebo-controlled study. To investigate the effectiveness of cranial acupuncture, three fMRI sequences were performed: 1) without acupuncture, 2) sham acupuncture (acupressure without needling) and 3) YNSA acupuncture. The subjects (17 stroke patients with right hemisphere lesions and 19 healthy controls) were instructed to alternately make a fist (3s) and close it again (2s). There were a total of five blocks, each with a duration of 120s. Compared to sham acupuncture, cortical activations in motor, premotor and supplementary motor areas were observed during YNSA acupuncture.

In contrast to Schockert and colleagues, the planned study uses resting-state fMRI to determine whether YNSA acupuncture is associated with changes of functional connectivity within different resting-state networks.

Inclusion criteria

• adults aged 18 to 65

Exclusion criteria

• mental disorders (dementia, depression)
• MRI contraindications
• claustrophobia
• weight > 120 kg