Electroacupuncture at ear acupoint treating depression: clinical and brain mechanism fMRI research progress

This paper mainly provides an overview of the brief history of ear acupoints and introduces the clinical application and brain mechanisms of auricular electroacupuncture therapy for depression. Auricular electroacupuncture is a transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) technique derived from traditional Chinese medicine ear acupoint theories and modern medicine’s vagus nerve theories. It uses microcurrent to stimulate visceral-related acupoints in the concha region and the subcutaneous vagus nerve, producing therapeutic effects on various brain disorders. This article focuses on the evidence-based controlled clinical trials of taVNS for mild-to-moderate depression, as well as recent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies that elucidate its complex brain networks.