简介：Acupunctureiswidelyusedtotreatfunctionaldyspepsiawithsatisfactoryoutcomes.CombinationoftheHeandMuacupointsiscommonlyusedandhasasynergisticeffectonfunctionaldyspepsia;however,itsunderlyingmechanismsremainunclear.Therefore,arandomizedcontrolledparallelclinicaltrialiscurrentlyunderwayatChengduUniversityofTraditionalChineseMedicine,China.ThistrialisdesignedtoexploretheefficacyofandcentralresponsestotheHe-Mupointcombinationinpatientswithfunctionaldyspepsiausingfunctionalmagneticresonanceimaging.Atotalof105patientswithfunctionaldyspepsiawillbeallocatedinto3groups:thelow-Hepointgroup(puncturingatZusanli(ST36)),Mupointgroup(puncturingatZhongwan(CV12)),andHe-Mupointcombinationgroup(puncturingatST36andCV12).Everyparticipantwillreceive20sessionsofmanualacupuncturefor4weeks.Theneedleswillbeinsertedperpendicularlytoadepthof1to2cun.Theangleofrotationandtwistingwillrangefrom90to180degrees,whileliftingandthrustingwillrangefrom0.3to0.5cm.Thevariousmanipulationswillbeperformed60to90timesperminute.Theneedleswillremaininplacefor30minutes,duringwhichmanipulationwillbeappliedevery10minutes.Magneticresonanceimagingwillbeperformedbeforeandafter20sessionsofacupuncture.TheprimaryoutcomeissymptomimprovementaccordingtotheChineseversionoftheNepeanDyspepsiaIndex.SecondaryoutcomesincludetheLeedsdyspepsiaquestionnaire,Self-RatingAnxietyScale,Self-RatingDepressionScale,BeckAnxietyInventory,BeckDepressionInventory,andvisualanaloguescalescoresbeforeandafter10and20sessionsofacupuncture.Needlesensationandadverseeventswillbeusedtoassessthetherapeuticeffects.ThisstudywillpromotemorewidespreadawarenessofthebenefitsofacupointcombinationintheclinicalsettingandprovideafurtherexplanationoftheneuromechanismbywhichacupunctureattheHe-Mupointcombinationforfunctio