Brain Awareness Week, 19th of March 2015, Belgrade, Serbia

Influence of acupuncture on Autonomic Nervous System: A Case Study

Zoran Mati1, Dejan Rakovi2, Branislav Milovanovi3, Tatjana Mii5, Ljubica Konstantinovi4
1 PhD student at Biomedical Engineering and Technologies, University of Belgrade, Belgrade
2 Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Belgrade, Belgrade
3 Clinical Hospital Bezanijska Kosa, Neurocardiological Laboratory, Medical Faculty, University of Belgrade, Belgrade
4 Cert MD-ORT, Military Medical Center Slavija, University of Belgrade, Belgrade
5 Institute of Rehabilitation, Medical Faculty, University of Belgrade, Belgrade

Abstract RESULTS
The aim of this study is detection of heart rate variability (HRV) and blood pressure Task Force Monitor recording
variability (BPV) decrease after application of long term acupuncture needling in Signals: Statistics:

order to find correlation of therapeutic effects of the acupuncture and HRV and BPV
changes that reflect symphatetic/parasymphatetic autonomic nervous system (ANS)
regulation affected by acupuncture therapy.

INTRODUCTION Figure 1: HRV before (left) and after (right) acupuncturetreatments.

HRV and BPV are key measurable

indicators of autonomic regulation functions
[1] and, since recently, diagnostic
parameters of physiological and
pathological states of human organism [2,3].
Their time variations are mainly caused by
influence of sympathetic/parasympathetic
Figure 1: Tachogram in rest (left); HRV spectra (FFT transformation). Figure 2: Systolic sBPV (red), mean mBPV (green) and diastolic dBPV (blue) before (left) and after (right) acupuncture treatments.
High frequency HF (0.15 - 0.4 Hz): parasympathetic ANS regulation
Low frequency LF:(0.04 to 0.15 Hz): sympatetic ANS regulation
ANS on cardiovascular system (CVS) [3]. The very low frequency VLF (0.0033 to 0.04 Hz): termoregulation of CNS [4]

Also, HRV and BPV are often used in evaluation of effect of acupuncture on ANS. Quantum Magnetic Resonance Analyzer health reports:
Lack of long term experimental procedures in related literature [1,5], motivated our research.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Experiment was conducted in a healthy subject with slightly elevated blood pressure.
Experimental procedure was done in next steps:
First, we used Task Force Monitor (TFM) (CNSystems, Austria; 1000 Hz
sampling rate, ECG main leads, finger sensor and forearm cuff for PB continuous
monitoring) for recording HRV and BPV during 10 minutes in rest;
Then, 24 h ECG and pressure holter monitoring were used;
Afterwards, physician with 2 years of experience in acupuncture stimulated
acupuncture points for seven days. Becide TCM standard procedure for relaxation
of acupuncture system, certain acupuncture points were stimulated acording to
recommendation for elevated blood pressure [6]:
- large intestine (LI 11),
- stomach (ST 36), Figure 5: Acupuncture channels and collaterals analysis report card Figure 6: Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular analysis report card

- lungs (LU 3), Holter recording has shown no significant changes of HRV and BPV.
- spleen (SP 6),
- kidneys (KI 3).
CONCLUSION
HRV and BPV are parameters sensitive to physical activities and emotional states of
patient. We have succeeded to get expected decrease of HRV and BPV by using
TFM in rest (but not by holter recording, requiring more rigorous experimental
conditions in further). We assume that measured decrease is caused by reaction
(excess) of parasympathetic ANS to acupuncture therapy. The obtained results are
preliminary and must be confirmed by more research studies [9].

Fig. 2: Task force Monitor [7]
After acupuncture, we repeated the same measuring procedure. Signals before and
after acupuncture were analyzed and compared (in time and frequent domain) using
Matlab (The Mathworks, Natick, USA) software.
Additionally, systematic health exemination
was done with Quantum Magnetic Resonance
Analyzer (QMRA) (Essentials of life, New
Hampshire).
Protocol of experiment was done in
Neurocardiological Laboratory of Clinical
hospital Beanijska Kosa.
References
[1] Haker E. et al, Effect of sensory stimulation (acupuncture) on sympathetic and parasympathetic activities in
Fig. 3: Acupuncture meridian map
healthy subjects, Journal od Autonomic Nervous System, Vol. 79, No. 1, pp. 52-59, 2000;
[2] Anderson B. et al, Acupuncture and heart rate variability: A systems level approach to understanding
mechanism, Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 99106, 2012;
[3] http://www.cnsystems.com/autonomic-function-tests (date: 03/04/2015);
[4] Guidelines, Heart rate variability. Standards of measurement, physiological interpretation, and clinical use.
Task Force of The European Society of Cardiology and The North American., Society of Pacing and
Electrophysiology (Membership of the Task Force listed in the Appendix), European Heart Journal, 17, 354381,
1996;
[5] Lee S. et al., Acupuncture and heart rate variability: A systematic review, Autonomic Neuroscience, Vol. 155,
No. 1-2, pp. 5-13, 2010;
[6] kokljev A., Akupunkturologija, Nauna knjiga, Beograd, 1987;
[7] http://www.schiller.pl/www/frame.php?nazwa=tfm (date: 03/04/2015);
[8] http://altered-states.net/index2.php?/cart/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=1664 (date:
03/04/2015)
[9] Z. Mati, D. Rakovi, B. Milovanovi, Lj. Konstantinovi, T. Mii, Autonomous nervous system versus
acupuncture system, Proc. Int.Conf.Brain AwarenesWeek, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Belgrade, 2014.
Fig. 5: Quantum magnetic resonance analyzer [8]

Poster produced by Faculty & Curriculum Support (FACS), Georgetown University School of Medicine