MR imaging shows why acupuncture may help with depression
MRI data suggest that acupuncture may relieve depression symptoms by altering activity in regions involved in emotional regulation and reward processing, according to a new meta-analysis.
Researchers synthesized data from seven randomized controlled trials involving 357 patients to investigate how acupuncture-based treatments affect brain activity in individuals with major depressive disorder. Using resting-state functional MRI, experts identified consistent changes in regional brain activity among patients receiving acupuncture compared to those who underwent conventional treatment.
Those involved in the analysis suggest that the findings could offer an explanation for the relief many patients receive as a result of acupuncture, which has been largely misunderstood.
“Our findings indicate that acupuncture-based interventions elicit a distinct pattern of neuroplastic remodeling, targeting key regions involved in emotion regulation and reward processing, which contrasts with the hippocampal–occipital effects of conventional treatments,” corresponding author Juwei Zhang, with the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, and colleagues wrote. “The correlation between neuroplastic changes in affective circuits and clinical improvement supports a potential mechanism for acupuncture’s efficacy in alleviating core depressive symptoms such as anhedonia and emotional dysregulation.”
When analyzing imaging data, the team observed several alterations in neural activity among the acupuncture group. Acupuncture was associated with increased activity in the right cingulum and right caudate nucleus; the cingulum is involved in emotional processing and cognitive control, while the caudate plays an important role in reward processing and motivation. A different pattern was observed among patients receiving conventional treatments, which primarily increased activity in the left hippocampus and right middle occipital gyrus.
Changes in certain brain regions also appeared to correspond with clinical improvement. The group found associations between reductions in depression symptoms and neuroplastic changes in the left cerebellum. They also observed a dose-dependent relationship between the number of acupuncture sessions and changes in the left amygdala, which is known to be involved in emotional processing. This corresponded with greater reductions in depression and anxiety scores in the acupuncture group compared to those in control groups.
Although the findings offer new insight into the underlying mechanisms of the effectiveness of acupuncture for treating depression, the group suggested that larger clinical trials with longer follow-up data are needed to validate the results.
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In addition to her background in journalism, Hannah also has patient-facing experience in clinical settings, having spent more than 12 years working as a registered rad tech. She began covering the medical imaging industry for Innovate Healthcare in 2021.