The Efficacy of Acupuncture and Moxibustion in the Treatment of

Irritable Bowel Syndrome – A Narrative Review

John Cassone

SOUTH BAYLO UNIVERSITY at ANAHEIM, 2018 Research Advisor: Sandjaya Trikadibusana, L.Ac., Ph.D., M.D.

ABSTRACT

Diseases and disorders of the gastrointestinal tract are common and increasing in the developed world. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is one of such disorders which comes with a high morbidity rate. Conventional care models are branch treatment focused, meaning they interrupt the disease mechanism but do not address the cause of the disease. They do not treat by improving normal function or identifying factors that disrupt function and are also associated with high costs and undesirable side effects. According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, acupuncture is considered safe with relatively few complications. The purpose of this study is to review current research on the treatment of IBS, and the related symptoms of visceral hyperalgesia, using acupuncture and moxibustion applied to specific acupoints. A narrative review was conducted by performing a comprehensive search on four electronic databases: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Alt Health Watch, and EBSCO, and the following keywords were used;  “irritable bowel syndrome and acupuncture,” “irritable bowel syndrome and moxibustion,” “visceral hypersensitivity and acupuncture,” and “visceral hypersensitivity and moxibustion.” Studies more than 5 years old, opinion based articles (including blog entries), and all non-scientific or non-peer reviewed articles were excluded. Studies involving laser acupuncture, acupressure, auricular acupuncture, ear seeds, or reflexology were also excluded. From the 26 articles yielded there were 3 systematic reviews, 3 qualitative reviews, 1 case study, 11 RCTs using animal subjects, and 8 RCTs using human subjects. The results of the review showed evidence for the effectiveness in treating IBS related symptoms with a variety of measurable outcomes using multiple acupuncture and moxibustion treatment strategies. While there is significant evidence that acupuncture and moxibustion can positively affect factors and symptoms related to IBS, more thorough and well-designed Randomized and Controlled Trials are needed for mainstream medical acceptance.