Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40750272›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2025

Effect of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation on postoperative pain in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy: study protocol for a single-centre, prospective, randomised, double-blind, controlled study.

Qin Zhang, Ling Zhang, Dongxu Wang, Ya Cao, Liang Yu, Zhonghua Li, Keyu Fan, Mingxia Liu, Jingqiu Wei, Qianrong Wang and 1 more

Abstract readClinical Trial Protocol
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Qin ZhangThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7226-7001
Ling ZhangThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0006-9882-3516
Dongxu WangThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0001-4858-0353
Ya CaoThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0009-7691-6924
Liang YuThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9445-4075
Zhonghua LiThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9380-2130
Keyu FanThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0008-9432-8387
Mingxia LiuThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-2104-3195
Jingqiu WeiThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0001-0276-3058
Qianrong WangThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0005-6759-5154
He LiuThe Fifth School of Clinical Medicine of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Huzhou Central Hospital, Huzhou, Zhejiang, China lh121061@163.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4103-312X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionPain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC) is different from open cholecystectomy, characterised by visceral pain, parietal pain and shoulder pain, which affects postoperative recovery in patients undergoing LC. Recent studies have demonstrated the clinical efficacy of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) in both acute and chronic pain treatment. The objective of this study protocol is to investigate the efficacy of taVNS in alleviating postoperative pain following LC. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: In this single-centre, prospective, randomised, double-blind and controlled study, we will enrol 88 participants, aged between 18 and 65 years, who are scheduled for elective LC, and they will be randomly assigned to either the taVNS group (group T) or the control group (group C). For the primary outcome, we will compare the difference in pain score 6 hours after LC assessed using the Numeric Rating Scale. For the secondary outcomes, we will compare the difference including Quality of Recovery-15, Self-rating Depression Scale, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index and Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting score. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The Ethics Committee of Huzhou Central Hospital granted approval for the study with approval number: 202301007-01. Dissemination will be via national anaesthesia conferences and publication in the peer-reviewed literature. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: ChiCTR2300068410.

Indexed as

Cholecystectomy, LaparoscopicPostoperative PainTranscutaneous Electric Nerve StimulationVagus Nerve StimulationAdolescentAdultAgedDouble-Blind MethodFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementProspective StudiesRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicYoung AdultAdult anaesthesiaClinical ProtocolsClinical TrialPain management

Identifiers

PMID40750272
PMCPMC12315001

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.