Effects of acupoint therapy on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Acupuncture for obesity and related diseases: Insight for regulating neural circuit

Obesity is defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health. Obesity is associated with numerous pathological changes including insulin resistance, fatty liver, hyperlipidemias, and other obesity-related diseases. These comorbidities comprise a significant public health threat. Existing anti-obesity drugs have been limited by side effects that include depression, suicidal thoughts, cardiovascular complications and stroke. Acupuncture treatment has been shown to be effective for treating obesity and obesity-related conditions, while avoiding side effects. However, the mechanisms of acupuncture in treating obesity-related diseases, especially its effect on neural circuits, are not well understood. A growing body of research has studied acupuncture's effects on the endocrine system and other mechanisms related to the regulation of neural circuits. In this article, recent research that was relevant to the use of acupuncture to treat obesity and obesity-related diseases through the neuroendocrine system, as well as some neural circuits involved, was summarized. Based on this, acupuncture's potential ability to regulate neural circuits and its mechanisms of action in the endocrine system were reviewed, leading to a deeper mechanistic understanding of acupuncture's effects and providing insight and direction for future research about obesity. Please cite this article as: Jiang LY, Tian J, Yang YN, Jia SH, Shu Q. Acupuncture for obesity and related diseases: insight for regulating neural circuit. J Integr Med. 2024; 22(2): 93-101.

Electro-acupuncture reduced steatosis on MRI-PDFF in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis: a randomized controlled pilot clinical trial

BACKGROUND

Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) had not yet been approved therapy. Electro-acupuncture (EA) has been reported to have potential efficacy. However, high-quality clinical evidence was still lacking.

METHODS

NASH patients were randomized and allocated to either sham acupuncture (SA) or EA group in a 1:1 ratio, with the patient blinded. Each patient received 36 sessions of SA or EA treatment over 12 weeks, followed by additional 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the changes in relative liver fat content measured by magnetic resonance imaging proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF).

RESULTS

A total of 60 patients were enrolled. From baseline to week 12, the reduction of relative liver fat content measured by MRI-PDFF in the EA group (- 33.6%, quantile range: - 52.9%, - 22.7%) was significantly more significant than that in the SA group (- 15.8%, quantile range: - 36.1%, - 2.7%) (p = 0.022). Furthermore, the EA group had more patients who achieved MRI-PDFF to 30% reduction at week 12 (53.3% vs. 25.9%, p = 0.035). EA treatment also significantly reduced body weight (- 3.0 vs. + 0.1 kg, p = 0.034) and BMI (- 1.5 vs. - 0.2 kg/m², p = 0.013) at week 16. Except for AST (- 27.4 vs. - 16.2 U/L, p = 0.015), other biochemical varieties, including ALT, fasting-glucose, cholesterol, and triglyceride, showed no statistically significant difference. Both groups measured no significant changes in liver stiffness by magnetic resonance elastography (MRE). There were no serious adverse events in either group.

CONCLUSIONS

Twelve weeks of EA effectively and safely reduces relative liver fat content in NASH patients. Further multicenter randomized controlled studies are needed. Trial registration Chinese Clinical Trial Registry, ChiCTR2100046617. Registered 23 May 2021, http://www.chictr.org.cn/edit.aspx?pid=127023&htm=4.

Underlying mechanisms of acupuncture therapy on polycystic ovary syndrome: Evidences from animal and clinical studies

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrine and metabolic disorder among women of reproductive age. Current standard treatment includes lifestyle change, oral pharmacological agents, and surgical modalities. However, the efficacy of current therapies is less than satisfactory. Clinical evidence has shown that acupuncture is effective for regulating hormone levels, promoting ovulation, and attenuating insulin resistance in patients with PCOS. Acupuncture may affect the production of β-endorphin, which may lead to gonadotropin-releasing hormone secretion and then affect ovulation, menstrual cycle, and fertility. The mechanism of acupuncture for patients with PCOS has not been comprehensively reviewed so far. Better understanding of the mechanisms of acupuncture would help popularize the use of acupuncture therapy for patients with PCOS. In this narrative review, we aimed to overview the potential mechanisms and evidence-based data of acupuncture on PCOS, and analyze the most frequently used acupoints based on animal and clinical studies. The results of this study will contribute to a better understanding of the current situation in this field.