Although acupuncture is increasingly utilized for medical therapy, its mechanism of action remains uncertain. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation to demonstrate lateralized effects of motor cortex excitability with this technique. Right-sided reduction in motor cortex excitability and a tendency to the opposite effect on the left side was seen with acupuncture. Sham needle insertions did not result in significant changes of motor cortex excitability. These findings provide new neurophysiological evidence of cortical excitability modulation complementary to findings derived from functional neuroimaging studies.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.