title: [Clinical observation on abdominal electroacupuncture for treatment of poststroke constipation].
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Section of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of TCM, Harbin 150036, China. ds2001w@tom.com
authors.forename: Dong-sheng
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Shun
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Ling-li
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.forename: Wei-yan
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xiao-mei
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Cui
mesh_terms: 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*