Ji HC, Nie LJ, Wu JX, Liu X, Zheng X. Effect of warm acupuncture and acupoint massage on postoperative gastrointestinal function in gastric cancer surgery patients: A meta-analysis. World J Gastrointest Surg 2025; 17(9): 106654 [DOI: 10.4240/wjgs.v17.i9.106654]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Xiao Zheng, DM, Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 278 Zhongshan West Road, Jiaojiang District, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China. z67623@126.com
Research Domain of This Article
Surgery
Article-Type of This Article
Meta-Analysis
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
World J Gastrointest Surg. Sep 27, 2025; 17(9): 106654 Published online Sep 27, 2025. doi: 10.4240/wjgs.v17.i9.106654
Effect of warm acupuncture and acupoint massage on postoperative gastrointestinal function in gastric cancer surgery patients: A meta-analysis
Hai-Chun Ji, Ling-Juan Nie, Jia-Xi Wu, Xiao Liu, Xiao Zheng
Hai-Chun Ji, Department of Rehabilitation, Taizhou Central Hospital, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China
Ling-Juan Nie, ENT Department, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China
Jia-Xi Wu, Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jiazhi Street Community Health Service Center, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China
Xiao Liu, Department of Preventive Medicine, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taizhou 31800, Zhejiang Province, China
Xiao Zheng, Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China
Author contributions: Ji HC and Nie LJ designed the research study; Ji HC, Nie LJ, Wu JX, Liu X, and Zheng X performed the research; Ji HC and Liu X collected and analyzed the data; Nie LJ and Wu JX have been involved in drafting the manuscript and all authors have been involved in revising it critically for important intellectual content. All authors give final approval of the version to be published. All authors have participated sufficiently in the work to take public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to its accuracy or integrity.
Conflict-of-interest statement: All the authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Xiao Zheng, DM, Department of Acupuncture and Moxibustion, Taizhou Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, No. 278 Zhongshan West Road, Jiaojiang District, Taizhou 318000, Zhejiang Province, China. z67623@126.com
Received: May 9, 2025 Revised: June 19, 2025 Accepted: August 4, 2025 Published online: September 27, 2025 Processing time: 138 Days and 1.4 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
This study seeks to systematically assess the effects of warm acupuncture combined with acupoint massage on the recovery of gastrointestinal function following gastric cancer surgery.
AIM
To evaluate the impact of warm acupuncture combined with acupoint massage on postoperative gastrointestinal function recovery after gastric cancer surgery, based on a systematic review and meta-analysis.
METHODS
A comprehensive search was conducted across multiple databases, including PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, Web of Science, CNKI, Wanfang, and VIP, for relevant studies published up to January 2025. Meta-analyses were carried out using RevMan 5.4, with results presented as standardized mean difference (SMD) or odds ratio with 95% confidence interval (CI). Study heterogeneity was evaluated using the I2 statistic, and sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the stability of the findings.
RESULTS
A total of 8 randomized controlled trials involving 694 patients were included. The meta-analysis showed that warm acupuncture combined with acupoint massage significantly improved postoperative gastrointestinal function by reducing the time to first flatus (SMD = -2.14, 95%CI: -3.14 to -1.14, P < 0.0001), time to first bowel movement (SMD = -2.43, 95%CI: -3.52 to -1.34, P < 0.0001), time to bowel sounds recovery (SMD = -3.15, 95%CI: -4.50 to -1.80, P < 0.00001), and time to initiate nasogastric or jejunal feeding (SMD = -1.31, 95%CI: -2.44 to -0.18, P = 0.02).
CONCLUSION
The combination of warm acupuncture and acupoint massage markedly enhances gastrointestinal recovery following surgery.
Core Tip: This meta-analysis explores the therapeutic impact of combining warm acupuncture with acupoint massage on postoperative gastrointestinal recovery in patients after gastric cancer surgery. The findings suggest that this integrative approach enhances gastrointestinal motility restoration and supports hormonal balance more effectively than standard postoperative care. Although variability exists among the included studies, the results underscore the promise of this traditional Chinese medicine-based intervention as a supplementary treatment option, warranting further validation in well-controlled clinical environments.
