ELECTRO-ACUPUNCTURE AT JIANSHI (PC5) AND NEIGUAN (PC6) ALTERS HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV) IN FRIGHTENED VOLUNTEERS

Authors

  • Huanlin Huang School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Zheng Zhong Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Xinyi Zhang School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Jizhou Wang The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Yujie Li The First School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Ole Bernt Fasmer Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen
  • Gustav Wik Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen
  • Yong Huang School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
  • Shaohui Huang

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.21010/ajtcam.vi15.1.10

Keywords:

electro-acupuncture, Jianshi (PC5), Neiguan (PC6), Heart Rate Variability (HRV), fear emotion, Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)

Abstract

Background: Fear is one of the most widely studied emotions and is closely associated with the autonomic nervous system (ANS). Previous studies have proven that acupuncture directly impacts the ANS, influences the heart rate (HR) and the heart rate variability (HRV) and exerts other effects. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of Jianshi (PC5) and Neiguan (PC6) electro-acupuncture on HRV during fear-invoking auditory stimulation using an Actiheart ECG recorder. Materials and Methods: Two hundred healthy subjects were recruited. Using a random number table, subjects were grouped for exposure to fear-invoking auditory stimulation (n=40) or neutral auditory stimulation (n=40). After determining that our fear-invoking auditory stimulation produced the fear emotion, the other 120 subjects were similarly divided into an electro-acupuncture (EA group) and a control group that received PC5 and PC6 electro-acupuncture or no intervention. Results: The fear score of the fear-invoking auditory group was significantly higher than that of the neutral auditory group. The EA group showed higher SD, RMSSD, and high frequency (HF) components of HRV than those of the control group. Conclusion: The primary result suggests that PC5 and PC6 electro-acupuncture affects cardiac autonomic neural regulation, mainly via the parasympathetic system, in subjects exposed to fear-invoking auditory stimulation.

Downloads

Published

2017-12-29

How to Cite

Huang, H., Zhong, Z., Zhang, X., Wang, J., Li, Y., Fasmer, O. B., Wik, G., Huang, Y., & Huang, S. (2017). ELECTRO-ACUPUNCTURE AT JIANSHI (PC5) AND NEIGUAN (PC6) ALTERS HEART RATE VARIABILITY (HRV) IN FRIGHTENED VOLUNTEERS. African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines, 15(1), 98–109. https://doi.org/10.21010/ajtcam.vi15.1.10

Issue

Vol. 15 No. 1 (2018)

Section

Research Papers

License

Copyright: Creative Commons Attribution CC.

This license lets others distribute, remix, tweak, and build upon your work, even commercially, as long as they credit you for the original creation. This is the most accommodating of licenses offered. Recommended for maximum dissemination and use of licensed materials. View License Deed | View Legal Code Authors can also self-archive their manuscripts immediately and enable public access from their institution's repository. This is the version that has been accepted for publication and which typically includes author-incorporated changes suggested during submission, peer review and in editor-author communications.

Most read articles by the same author(s)