An fMRI study of the effects on normal language areas when acupuncturing the Tongli (HT(5)) and Xuanzhong (GB(39)) acupoints

OBJECTIVE: Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) analysis of the effects of acupuncturing the Tongli (HT(5)) and Tongli (HT(5))–Xuanzhong (GB(39)) acupoints on the normal language areas with a view to providing a theoretical basis for using acupuncture to treat patients with aphasia. METHODS: This study enrolled healthy volunteers. The following acupoints were stimulated: right Tongli (HT(5)), right Tongli (HT(5))–Xuanzhong (GB(39)), right Tongli (HT(5)) sham acupuncture, left Tongli (HT(5)), and left Tongli (HT(5))–Xuanzhong (GB(39)) acupoints. Acupuncture stimulation was delivered whilst fMRI scanning of the brain was undertaken. RESULTS: Ten healthy volunteers (five males) were included in this study (mean age 44.5 ± 2.5 years; range 40–55 years). Based on the statistical analyses, only acupuncturing the right Tongli (HT(5)) acupoint resulted in activation of multiple regions of the bilateral cerebral hemisphere that were closely related to the language regions. The right Tongli (HT(5)) stimulation had a laterality index of 0.0952; with the activated voxels on the left side language-related areas being greater than those on the right side. CONCLUSIONS: Acupuncturing the right Tongli (HT(5)) acupoint results in activation of the bilateral language-related areas, so this acupoint might be useful for the acupuncture treatment of aphasia caused by cerebral infarction.