Effect of Transcutaneous Auricular Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Chronic Constipation

Summary

The worldwide prevalence of chronic constipation (CC) is 15%, and women are more likely to develop the disease than men. CC have a significant impact on quality of life and increase the burden of national health insurance. The conventional medication treatments are primarily symptom-specific and have limited efficacy. Previous small sample study had shown the therapeutic potential of transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) for irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C). The aim of this study was to investigate whether taVNS could improve defecation condition and constipation symptoms in patients with CC.

Timeline

Start

2023-01-03

Primary completion

2023-07-31

Completion

2023-09-28

Publications

• Results Mugie SM, Benninga MA, Di Lorenzo C. Epidemiology of constipation in children and adults: a systematic review. Best Pract Res Clin Gastroenterol. 2011 Feb;25(1):3-18. doi: 10.1016/j.bpg.2010.12.010.
• Results Nag A, Martin SA, Mladsi D, Olayinka-Amao O, Purser M, Vekaria RM. The Humanistic and Economic Burden of Chronic Idiopathic Constipation in the USA: A Systematic Literature Review. Clin Exp Gastroenterol. 2020 Jul 16;13:255-265. doi: 10.2147/CEG.S239205. eCollection 2020.
• Results Shi X, Hu Y, Zhang B, Li W, Chen JD, Liu F. Ameliorating effects and mechanisms of transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation on abdominal pain and constipation. JCI Insight. 2021 Jul 22;6(14):e150052. doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.150052.
• Liu T, Wang Z, Li Y, Kang X, Wang X, Ren G, Lv Y, Li J, Liu Y, Liang S, Wang X, Huang X, Zhang X, Wang J, Nie Y, Luo H, Sun J, Qin W, Han Y, Pan Y. Effects of Transcutaneous Auricular Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Chronic Constipation: A Multicenter, Randomized Controlled Study. United European Gastroenterol J. 2025 Oct;13(8):1550-1559. doi: 10.1002/ueg2.70041. Epub 2025 May 13.

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