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Core Acupoints and Acupoint Combination Patterns for Acupuncture Treatment of Discogenic Low Back Pain: A Data Mining
Yiqi Dong1, Yunyun Xu1, Shuwen Wu1
1Department of Tuina, Hangzhou Red Cross Hospital, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People's Republic of China.
Journal of Pain Research
|August 1, 2026
Summary
This study reveals distinct acupuncture point selection for discogenic low back pain (DLBP), emphasizing warming and local treatments. This differs from lumbar disc herniation (LDH) protocols, offering evidence for DLBP-specific acupuncture.
Area of Science:
- Integrative Medicine
- Traditional Chinese Medicine
- Data Mining in Healthcare
Background:
- Discogenic low back pain (DLBP) is a specific chronic low back pain subtype caused by intradiscal degeneration without nerve compression.
- Existing data-mining studies on acupuncture primarily focus on lumbar disc herniation (LDH), leaving a gap in evidence for DLBP-specific acupoint selection.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically identify acupuncture prescription rules for DLBP using data-mining techniques.
- To establish evidence-based acupoint selection paradigms for DLBP.
Main Methods:
- Searched eight databases for clinical studies on acupuncture for DLBP (2016-2025).
- Analyzed acupoint frequency, association rules, and hierarchical clustering to identify core prescription patterns.
- Included 57 studies involving 41 acupoints.
Main Results:
- Top acupoints: BL40, BL25, Ashi points, EX-B2, BL23. Standard protocols: 30-min needle retention, daily sessions.
- Warm-needle acupuncture or moxibustion used in ~32% of treatments.
- Data mining revealed intra-meridian pairings (Du Meridian) and lower-limb combinations. Clustering identified systemic, local, and syndrome-specific acupoint clusters.
- DLBP prescriptions emphasized local/warming interventions (warm-needle, moxibustion) over distal Gallbladder meridian points compared to LDH.
Conclusions:
- This study establishes a unique "warming and dispersing cold, local precision" acupoint selection paradigm for DLBP.
- This contrasts with the LDH pattern of "activating blood and unblocking meridians distally".
- Findings provide quantitative evidence for developing diagnosis-specific acupuncture protocols for DLBP.