Objectives

This study aimed to demonstrate that acupressure could be used to relieve the symptoms of constipation during pregnancy.

Design

Single-blind randomized controlled trial

Setting

Private Medipol Nisa Hospital, Istanbul, Turkey

Intervention

This trial including 120 women aged ≥20 years was conducted from November 2019 to February 2020. The participating women who were in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd trimester of their pregnancy, had singleton pregnancy and had a complaint of constipation were randomized into the acupressure (n = 75) and control groups (n = 75). The women in the acupressure group applied 15 min of self-acupressure to the TH-6 acupuncture point twice a day for one week. The women in the control group received no intervention treatment.

Main outcome measures

Constipation levels of the participants in the two groups were assessed before and after the procedure using the Constipation Severity Instrument

Results

In the present study, after the application of self-acupressure, the severity of constipation decreased significantly in the acupressure group compared to the control group (before treatment: 41.36 ± 6.5 vs. 37.56 ± 6.17 respectively, after treatment: 26.08 ± 7.93 vs. 36.88 ± 5.93, respectively, p < 0.01)

Conclusion

Although it is safe to use medical drugs in constipation associated with pregnancy, can't reduce it to the extent desired. This study's evidence indicates that self-administered acupressure can effectively alleviate the symptoms of constipation in clinical practice.

中文翻译：

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自我指压对妊娠相关便秘的影响：一项单盲随机对照研究

目标

这项研究旨在证明穴位按摩可用于缓解怀孕期间的便秘症状。

设计

单盲随机对照试验

环境

土耳其伊斯坦布尔私立 Medipol Nisa 医院

干涉

这项试验包括 120 名年龄≥20 岁的女性，于 2019 年 11 月至 2020 年 2 月进行。参与的女性在妊娠的第 1、2 或 3 个月、单胎妊娠并抱怨便秘，被随机分配至穴位按摩组。n  = 75）和对照组（n  = 75）。指压组女性在TH-6穴位进行15分钟的自我指压，每天2次，持续1周。对照组女性未接受任何干预治疗。

主要观察指标

使用便秘严重程度仪在手术前后评估两组参与者的便秘水平

结果

在本研究中，自我指压后，与对照组相比，指压组便秘的严重程度显着降低（治疗前分别为41.36±6.5 vs. 37.56±6.17，治疗后：26.08±7.93 vs.分别为 36.88 ± 5.93，p  < 0.01)

结论

尽管在与怀孕有关的便秘中使用药物是安全的，但不能将其减少到所需的程度。这项研究的证据表明，在临床实践中，自我指压可以有效缓解便秘的症状。