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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurosci.
Sec. Neuroprosthetics
Volume 18 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1269903
This article is part of the Research Topic Advances, Challenges, and Applications in Brain-Computer Interface View all 20 articles

A Novel Acupuncture Technique at the Zusanli Point Based on Virtual Reality and EEG: A Pilot Study

Provisionally accepted
Yongheng Zhang Yongheng Zhang 1Weicheng Hua Weicheng Hua 1Haibin Zhu Haibin Zhu 2Ziqiu Zhou Ziqiu Zhou 2Jiawei Xiong Jiawei Xiong 2Jianbin Zhang Jianbin Zhang 2Duo `. Chen Duo `. Chen 1*Jiayang Guo Jiayang Guo 3
  • 1 Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China
  • 2 Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Liaoning Province, China
  • 3 Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Acupuncture is a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) method that achieves therapeutic effects through the interaction of neurotransmitters and neural regulation. It is generally carried out manually, making the related process expert-biased. Meanwhile, the neural stimulation effect of acupuncture is difficult to track objectively. In recent years, virtual reality (VR) in medicine has been on the fast lane to widespread use, especially in therapeutic stimulation. However, the use of related technologies in acupuncture has not been reported. In this work, we proposed a novel acupuncture stimulation technique using VR. To track the stimulation effect, the electroencephalogram (EEG) is used as the marker to validate brain activities under acupuncture. After statistically analyzing the data of 24 subjects during acupuncture at the "Zusanli"(ST36) acupoint, it has been determined that Virtual Acupuncture (VA) has at least a 63.54% probability of inducing similar EEG activities as in Manual Acupuncture (MA). This work may provide a new solution for researchers and clinical practitioners using Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) in acupuncture.

    Keywords: TCM, Acupuncture, VR, EEG, BCI Heartbeats per minute during detection. 2 BT: Forehead temperature during detection. 3 VH: Whether have VR using history. 4 AH: Whether have acupuncture experience. 2.2 EEG Headset

    Received: 31 Jul 2023; Accepted: 15 Apr 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhang, Hua, Zhu, Zhou, Xiong, Zhang, Chen and Guo. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Duo `. Chen, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.