Table 1.

Acupuncture treatment according to STRASA^∗.

Intervention	Item	Description
Experimental animals	(a) Animal model	Nonpain model
	(b) Details for animals	Sprague-Dawley rats of 8 to 9 weeks of age, weighing 250–300 g each
	(c) Experimental environment	Room temperature 24 ± 1°C, room humidity 63 ± 5%
Type of acupuncture	(a) Statement about the type of acupuncture used	Electroacupuncture (ES-160, ITO, Tokyo, Japan)
	(b) Rationale for treatment	Literature review and previous studies
List of points	(a) Name of points	PC5, PC6, ST36, ST37, BL14, BL15
	(b) Literature sources to justify rationale	Previous literature and animal studies (listed among references)
	(c) Location of point	(i) PC5: approximately 2-3 cm proximal to PC6, just above the median nerve (ii) PC6: inside the arm, approximately 4 cm proximal to the base of the palmar wrist crease, just above the median nerve (iii) ST36: on the anterior aspect of the knee, approximately 9 cm below the depression point lateral to the patellar ligament and 5 mm lateral to the anterior tubercle of the tibia (iv) ST37: approximately 9 cm below (distal) ST36 (v) BL14: on the outside dorsal spine corresponding to the 4th thoracic vertebrae (vi) BL15: on the outside dorsal spine corresponding to the 5th thoracic vertebrae
Needle stimulation	(a) Depth of insertion	PC5, PC6: 5 mm ST36, ST37, BL14, BL15: 1 cm
	(b) Needle stimulation technique	Electroacupuncture (2 Hz)
	(c) Needle retention time	30 min
	(d) Specification of needle	0.20 × 30 mm, Dongbang Acupuncture Inc., Gyeonggi-Do, Korea
	(e) Responses elicited	Motor threshold response (movement of the paw and visible muscle twitches of the stimulated leg)
Treatment regimen	(a) Number of treatment sessions	Five sessions
	(b) Frequency of treatment	Once per day
Cointervention	Other interventions	None
Practitioner background	(a) Duration of relevant training	Six years
	(b) Length of clinical experience	Four years
	(c) Expertise in specific condition	None
Control interventions	(a) Active comparison point	Away from acupuncture points and away from near meridians, at a shallower depth of insertion
	(b) Control stimulation	Manual acupuncture
	(c) Details of control intervention	Control points for PC5, PC6: two points located between the Triple Energizer meridian and the Small Intestine meridian Control points for ST36, ST37: two points located between the Gall Bladder meridian and the Bladder meridian
	(d) Sources that justify choice of control	Previous studies (the selection of acupuncture points was based on the results of previous studies)

^∗Standards for Reporting in Animal Studies of Acupuncture (STRASA) guidelines; PC, pericardium; ST, stomach; BL, bladder.