The Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Acupuncture and Their Relevance to Allergic Rhinitis: A Narrative Review and Proposed Model

Table 4

Summary of acupuncture effects on neurotrophins, IgE and eosinophils.

(a) Neurotrophins: biphasic action depending on disease and model

Disease	Model	Reported effect	Reference
Parkinson’s disease	Rodent	Upregulates BDNF in substantia nigra	[86]
Retinitis pigmentosa	Rodent	Upregulates NGF and BDNF in retina	[87]
Spinal cord injury	Feline	Upregulates NGF in spine	[88]
Polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS)	Rodent	Downregulates NGF in ovaries	[74–76]

(b) Serum IgE: contradictory findings

Disease	Model	Reported effect	Reference
Allergic rhinitis	Human	No significant decrease	[60]
Allergic rhinitis	Human	No significant decrease	[89]
Allergic rhinitis	Human	No significant decrease	[90]
Allergic rhinitis	Human	Significant decrease	[91]

(c) Eosinophils: contradictory findings

Disease	Model	Reported effect	Reference
Allergic rhinitis	Human	No significant difference in nasal or blood eosinophils	[90]
Allergic rhinitis	Human	No significant difference in blood eosinophils	[92]
Allergic rhinitis	Human	Significant decrease in blood eosinophils and percentage of nasal eosinophils	[91]