Review Article

Neuroplasticity of Acupuncture for Stroke: An Evidence-Based Review of MRI

Table 2

Characteristics of the five included animal studies.

Study (years)JournalStroke informationMRI informationGroupsAcupuncture informationData analysis
Main symptomsSpeciesThe affected sideMagnet strength (T)Treatment groupAcupoints

Zhang et al. 2011 [55]Brain injuryMiddle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) modelSD rats, after 24 hours of the surgeryLeft sideNA(1) MCAO,
(2) ,
EA, 30 minutesDU20DWI
Wu et al. 2012 [56]Acupuncture in medicineTransient middle cerebral artery occlusion (tMCAO)SD rats, after 30 minutes of the surgeryLeft side1.5-T(1) SC,
(2) tMCAO,
(3) ,
MA, 30 minutes for 28 daysDU20, DU14, LI10, and ST36ADC value and the FA
Liang et al. 2017 [57]Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseasesMotor impairments/middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)SD rats, after 24 hours of the surgeryLeft side7.0 T(1) SC,
(2) MCAO,
(3),
EA, 30 minutes per day for 7 consecutive daysST36 and LI11ReHo
Wen et al. 2018 [58]Journal of stroke and cerebrovascular diseasesMiddle cerebral artery occlusion induced cognitive deficit (MICD)SD rats, after 24 hours of the surgeryLeft side7.0 T(1) SC,
(2) MICD,
(3) ,
EA, 30 minutes per day for 14 consecutive daysDU20 and DU24ALFF
Li et al. 2021 [81]Acupuncture in medicineMotor impairments/middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO)SD rats, after 24 hours of the surgeryLeft side7.0 T(1) SC,
(2) MCAO,
(3) ,
EA, 30 minutes per day for 14 consecutive daysLI11 and ST36FC, left motor cortex as the seed region

Note: ALFF: amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations; DWI: diffusion-weighted imaging; SC: sham-operated control; SD: Sprague-Dawley rats.