Abstract
Background Research suggests that imagined experiences can produce brain responses similar to those produced by actual experiences. Shared brain responses that support both imagination and perception may underlie the functional nature of mental imagery. In a previous study, we combined acupuncture and imagery to develop a new treatment method, video-guided acupuncture imagery treatment (VGAIT). We found that VGAIT significantly increased pain thresholds in healthy subjects. The aim of this study is to extend our previous finding by investigating whether VGAIT can relieve symptoms in patients with chronic low back pain. Methods We first performed a single-arm study in which we administered video-guided acupuncture imagery treatment (VGAIT) on patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) (Study 1, n = 18, 12 females). We then compared our findings to those from a recently published study in which real or sham acupuncture treatment was applied on patients with cLBP (Study 2, n = 50, 31 females) using a similar protocol. All patients in Studies 1 and 2 received 6 treatments over 4 weeks. Results All three treatments (VGAIT, real, and sham acupuncture) significantly reduced pain severity as measured by a low back pain bothersomeness score. VGAIT produced similar effects to real acupuncture (p = 0.97) and nonsignificantly greater pain bothersomeness relief compared to sham acupuncture (p = 0.14). Additional analysis showed that there was no significant difference on the sensations evoked by different treatment modalities. Conclusion These findings support VGAIT as a promising method for pain management.
Highlights
Chronic low back pain is a highly prevalent and disabling disorder with few satisfactory treatment options [1, 2]
Studies have found that imagined experiences can produce brain responses similar to those that occur during actual experiences [15,16,17]
We found that video-guided acupuncture imagery treatment (VGAIT), a combination of the two methods, relieved pain bothersomeness in patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) and produced a marginally significant greater reduction in anxiety level compared to sham acupuncture treatment
Summary
Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is a highly prevalent and disabling disorder with few satisfactory treatment options [1, 2]. Shared brain responses that support both imagination and perception may underlie the functional nature of mental imagery. The aim of this study is to extend our previous finding by investigating whether VGAIT can relieve symptoms in patients with chronic low back pain. We first performed a single-arm study in which we administered video-guided acupuncture imagery treatment (VGAIT) on patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) (Study 1, n = 18, 12 females). We compared our findings to those from a recently published study in which real or sham acupuncture treatment was applied on patients with cLBP (Study 2, n = 50, 31 females) using a similar protocol. VGAIT produced similar effects to real acupuncture (p = 0:97) and nonsignificantly greater pain bothersomeness relief compared to sham acupuncture (p = 0:14). These findings support VGAIT as a promising method for pain management
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