Acquisition and objective quantification analysis of acupuncture manipulation parameters based on the optical positioning system

ObjectiveTo establish a method for in vivo acquisition of acupuncture manipulation （AM） waveforms and objective quantitative analysis of acupuncture parameters based on the motion trajectory of filiform needle by applying an optical positioning system， so as to evaluate the accuracy of AM waveforms acquisition and feasibility of quantitative analysis performed by the method.MethodsFirstly， the Ruitong SE optical positioning system and a customized marking ball that can be connected to an acupuncture needle were employed to construct an in vivo AM acquisition method. The AM waveforms acquired by the optical positioning system and the AM parameter-measuring instrument were respectively compared and analyzed. Then， the waveforms of 6 types of AMs， namely， the lifting-thrusting uniform reinforcing-reducing method， lifting-thrusting reinforcing method， lifting-thrusting reducing method， twirling reinforcing-reducing method， twirling reinforcing method and twirling reducing method， were recorded in real time by stimulating Zusanli （ST36） in healthy volunteers. The AM parameters including the displacement and velocity of lifting and thrusting manipulations and the twisting angle and angular velocity of the twirling method were quantitatively analyzed.ResultsThe AM waveforms recorded by the optical positioning system were similar to the waveforms recorded by the AM parameter measuring instrument， which had a positive correlation （PPPPPConclusionThe AM waveforms recorded in vivo by using the optical positioning system are accurate， and can also be used for quantitative analysis of the AM parameters， which is applicable in the objective quantitative study of AMs.