Effects of Transcutaneous Auricular Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Chronic Constipation: A Multicenter, Randomized Controlled Study.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

The objective of this study was to investigate the efficacy of transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation (taVNS) in adult patients with chronic constipation.

Design

Consecutive patients who met the Rome IV criteria for chronic constipation were enrolled and randomly assigned to either the taVNS group or the sham-taVNS group. Treatment consisted of 30 min of therapy twice a day for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the response rate at week 1-4, defined as the proportion of patients with a weekly complete spontaneous bowel movement (CSBM) of ≥ 3 and weekly excessive use of rescue medication ≤ 3 times. Secondary outcomes included spontaneous bowel movements, anxiety and depression scores, abdominal symptoms, and adverse events.

Results

The study was term

SUBMITTER: Liu T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12529053 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature