Mechanical effects of acupuncture

Acupuncture, a physiotherapy, has been widely accepted all around the world. This study focuses on the influence of membrane structures and explains the acupuncture sensations from the aspect of mechanical properties. By mathematical modeling and numerical simulation, the scientific meaning of the acupuncture depth is investigated and phenomena and theory of acupuncture are discussed. The simulation results show that (a) the fascial structure is the main contributor to the force on the needle, the axial force will gradually increase before piercing the fascial, and suddenly decrease after piercing the fascial; (b) there is an inverse relationship between the needle radius and the maximum radial stress, which indicates that the needle should not be too sharp to cause local stress concentration and piece the fascia layer; and (c) the simulation results of comprehensively considering the static friction and sliding friction is identical with the experiment results. This study proposes a preliminary study of mechanical effects of acupuncture manipulation, clarifies key factors affecting the stress on the needle, and explains the objective requirement of acupuncture depth to effective treatment.