This ensures controlled experimental conditions and eliminates sources of investigator bias. At each point, needle insertion depth is set in proportion to subcutaneous tissue thickness as determined by ultrasound. The same depth is used for corresponding acupuncture and control points. A secondary research question addressed in our study is whether the method of needle manipulation influences needle grasp. The acupuncture vs. control comparison is made within subjects, with acupuncture and control points randomized to right and left sides of the body.
Subjects are blind to both procedure type and acupuncture vs. control variables.
This difference is significant both at acupuncture points and at control points. These results provide objective evidence that acupuncture points have different biomechanical behavior than control points. Our results also show that needle manipulation strongly influences needle grasp, and does so at control points as well as at acupuncture points. We are planning to use the results of this study as a first step to understand the mechanisms underlying needle grasp, and the therapeutic significance of both de qi and acupuncture points. As a result of the growing number of research activities in the field of acupuncture over the past decade, an understanding of acupuncture and its' mechanisms has been substantially advanced.