Effectiveness of acupressure on elderly patients with constipation

Background: Constipation is a common health problem in older adults. Previous study findings have pointed towards acupressure as having possibly positive outcomes for patients with constipation. However, literature reviews have shown that rigorous empirical evidence is still required to establish clear guidelines with regard to the efficacy of prescribing acupressure in constipation treatment. Purpose: Our study intended to examine the effectiveness of acupressure in elderly patients with chronic constipation. Methods: Researchers adopted a two-group prospective, randomized study method. Study participants were recruited from a geriatric ward in a medical center in northern Taiwan. Patients with chronic constipation were invited to participate in the study. Fifty-nine patients were randomly assigned to either the experimental group (n = 29) or control group (n = 30). Acupressure was performed at four acupuncture points for a period of eight minutes plus abdominal massage for five minutes per treatment twice a day for seven days. The control group received standard prescribed medication without supplemental acupressure. All participants received the incident symptom of constipation and Bristol Stool Form Scale measurement immediately prior to acupressure on Day 1, the results of which served as baseline data. The Bristol Stool Form Scale was applied daily and the incident symptom of constipation was applied on Days 3 and 7 of the study. In addition, abdominal distension rates per day and numbers of bowel movements per day were measured daily before and after receiving acupressure for the experimental group. Results: There were significant improvements in constipation symptoms and Bristol Stool Form Scale scores in the experimental group compared to the control group. In the experimental group, frequency of bowel movements per day increased over time after adjusting for the effect of abdominal distension rate, and the odds ratio of the daily number of people with abdominal distension decreased over time. Conclusions: Acupressure has a possible positive effect on symptom relief in elderly patients. Further investigations are required to validate the clinical significance of study findings.