Brainy Reception: Visual Evidence that Acupuncture Stops Pain at the Source

Acupuncture has been used for over three centuries in East-Asian medicine to treat chronic and acute pain.

Yet acupuncture has not been widely accepted as an adjunct therapy with ordinary care for pain treatment in the United States. Part of the reason for the under utilization of acupuncture for pain management may originate from the belief that acupuncture is a placebo treatment for pain.

Recently, researchers at the University of Michigan Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center provided evidence that acupuncture affects the brain's long-term ability to regulate pain. The researchers used brain imaging as a tool to show that acupuncture can activate receptors in the brain that process and dampen pain signals. Specifically, showed acupuncture increased the binding availability of mu-opioid receptors (MOR) in regions of the brain (cingulate, insula, caudate, thalamus and amygdala) that process and dampen pain signals.

Opioid painkillers, such as morphine, codeine and other medications, are thought to work by binding to these opioid receptors in the brain and spinal cord. These findings suggest that acupuncture is not a placebo treatment for pain and may lead to enhanced pain relief if combined with opioid medications since the activated receptors seem to have more binding availability with acupuncture treatment. Regular acupuncture treatment combined with ordinary care for pain management offers enhanced pain relief for both chronic and acute pain management.

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