Trial reportChinese journal of integrative medicine2015
Comparison of electroacupuncture and moxibustion on brain-gut function in patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome: A randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in Chinese journal of integrative medicine, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- Visualization analysis of research hotspots and trends in traditional Chinese medicine external therapies for irritable bowel syndrome.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Symptom effects and central mechanism of acupuncture in patients with functional gastrointestinal disorders: a systematic review based on fMRI studies.BMC gastroenterology · 2024Pooled it
- Effectiveness of electroacupuncture on anxiety: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Pooled it
- Effects and Mechanisms of Acupuncture on Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of Chronic Pain Treatment on Altered Functional and Metabolic Activities in the Brain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Functional Neuroimaging Studies.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2021Pooled it
- Comparison of Electroacupuncture and Mild-Warm Moxibustion on Brain-Gut Function in Patients with Constipation-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Randomized Controlled Trial.Chinese journal of integrative medicine · 2018Trial
- Comparative effectiveness and underlying mechanisms of acupuncture approaches in IBS-D animal models: a protocol for systematic review and network meta-analysis.Systematic reviews · 2026Article
- Depression and Gastrointestinal Health Abnormalities: Treatment Approaches from the Perspective of Traditional Chinese Medicine.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2026Review
- Efficacy and mechanisms of neuromodulation in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome.Bioelectronic medicine · 2025Review
- Effects of acupuncture versus moxibustion on functional dyspepsia: a randomized clinical trial.Chinese medicine · 2025Article
- Study protocol for a prospective, investigator-initiated clinical trial on the vascular effects of acupuncture in the abdomen and lower limbs for patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome.International journal of colorectal disease · 2025Article
- Analysis of Electroacupuncture Parameters for Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Data Mining Approach.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- Moxibustion ameliorates chronic inflammatory visceral pain via spinal circRNA-miRNA-mRNA networks: a central mechanism study.Molecular brain · 2024Article
- Acupuncture and Drug Combination Therapy for Abnormal Glucose Metabolism: Exploring Synergistic Enhancement and Reduced Toxicity Mechanisms.Diabetes, metabolic syndrome and obesity : targets and therapy · 2024Review
- Electro-Acupuncture Effects Measured by Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging-A Systematic Review of Randomized Clinical Trials.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Acupuncture as multi-targeted therapy for the multifactorial disease obesity: a complex neuro-endocrine-immune interplay.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2023Review
- SAHA Alleviates Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome Through Regulation of the p-STAT3/SERT/5-HT Signaling Pathway.Journal of inflammation research · 2022Article
- Long-term effect of moxibustion on irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea: a randomized clinical trial.Therapeutic advances in gastroenterology · 2022Article
- Acupuncture as Part of Multimodal Analgesia for Chronic Pain.Orthopedic reviews · 2022Article
- Electroacupuncture suppresses glucose metabolism and GLUT-3 expression in medial prefrontal cortical in rats with neuropathic pain.Biological research · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo compare the effects of electroacupuncture (EA) and moxibustion therapies on patients with diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (D-IBS).
methodsA total of 60 D-IBS patients were randomly allocated to the EA group (30 cases) and moxibustion group (30 cases). Before and after treatment, the gastrointestinal symptoms and psychological symptoms were scored by Visual Analogue Scale, Bristol Stool Form Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA), and Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD); the expressions of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), 5-HT3 receptor (5-HT3R), and 5-HT4 receptor (5-HT4R) in the sigmoid mucosal tissue were measured by immunohistochemical staining. Additionally, the effects on the functional brain areas of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), insular cortex (IC) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) were observed by functional magnetic resonance imaging.
resultsCompared with before treatment, both EA and moxibustion groups reported significant improvements in abdominal pain and abdominal bloating after treatment (P<0.01 or P<0.05). The moxibustion group reported greater improvements in defecation emergency, defecation frequency, and stool feature than the EA group (P<0.01). Both HAMA and HAMD scores were significantly decreased in the moxibustion group than in the EA group (P<0.01). Both groups demonstrated significantly reduced expressions of 5-HT, 5-HT3R and 5-HT4R in the colonic mucosa after treatment (P<0.01), with a greater reduction of 5-HT in the moxibustion group (P<0.05). Finally, decreased activated voxel values were observed in the left IC, right IC and PFC brain regions of patients in the moxibustion group under stimulation with 150 mL colorectal distension after treatment (P<0.05 or P<0.01), while in the EA group only PFC area demonstrated a reduction (P<0.05).
conclusionMoxibustion can significantly improve the symptoms of D-IBS, suggesting that moxibustion may be a more effective therapy than EA for D-IBS patients.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.