[Clinical observation on abdominal electroacupuncture for treatment of poststroke constipation].
OBJECTIVE
To compare therapeutic effects of abdominal electroacupuncture (EA) and western medicine on poststroke constipation.


METHODS
Eighty cases were randomly divided into an EA group and a medication group, 40 cases in each group. The EA group were treated with EA at Daheng (SP 15), Fujie (SP 14), Tianshu (ST 25), Shuidao (ST 28), etc., once a day, 30 min each session, and the medication group with oral administration of 10 mg Cisapride, thrice each day. Seven days constituted one course. After 2 courses, clinical therapeutic effects were evaluated by cumulative scores of symptoms.


RESULTS
The total effective rate of 92.5% in the EA group was significantly better than 72.5% in the medication group (P < 0.05). After treatment, the cumulative scores of clinical symptoms significantly decreased in the two groups (P < 0.05) and the improving degrees of symptoms in the EA group was significantly better than that in the medication group (P < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Abdominal electroacupuncture has a definite therapeutic effect on poststroke constipation, accelerating gastrointestinal movement.
Wang
Dong-sheng
DS
Section of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of TCM, Harbin 150036, China. ds2001w@tom.com
Wang
Shun
S
Kong
Ling-li
LL
Wang
Wei-yan
WY
Cui
Xiao-mei
XM
D000005:Abdomen; D000368:Aged; D003248:Constipation / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D015671:Electroacupuncture; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D008875:Middle Aged; D020521:Stroke / Q000150:complications*