title: Auricular Acupuncture May Suppress Epileptic Seizures via Activating the Parasympathetic Nervous System: A Hypothesis Based on Innovative Methods.
abstract: Auricular acupuncture is a diagnostic and treatment system based on normalizing the body's dysfunction. An increasing number of studies have demonstrated that auricular acupuncture has a significant effect on inducing parasympathetic tone. Epilepsy is a neurological disorder consisting of recurrent seizures resulting from excessive, uncontrolled electrical activity in the brain. Autonomic imbalance demonstrating an increased sympathetic activity and a reduced parasympathetic activation is involved in the development and progress of epileptic seizures. Activation of the parasympathetic nervous system such as vagus nerve stimulation has been used for the treatment of intractable epilepsy. Here, we propose that auricular acupuncture may suppress epileptic seizures via activating the parasympathetic nervous system.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing 100700, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Pei-Jing
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Rong
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ben
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Litscher