Acupuncture and moxibustion for IBS

Anastasi JK et al. Symptom management for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): a pilot randomized controlled trial of acupuncture/moxibustion.
Gastroenterol Nurs. 2009 Jul-Aug;32(4):243-55

Twenty-nine people with IBS were randomized to 8 sessions of either individualized acupuncture/moxibustion or sham/placebo.  The average daily abdominal pain/discomfort improved in the Acupuncture/Moxa group but there was little change in the sham control (a statistically significant difference between groups). Furthermore the intestinal gas, bloating, and stool consistency composite score showed a similar pattern of improvement. Conclusions: Acu/Moxa treatment shows promise for symptom management for patients with IBS.

Acupuncture for IBS

Renolds JA et al. Acupuncture for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) an exploratory randomised controlled trial.
Acupunct Med 2008 Mar; 26(1):8-16.

This pragmatic randomized controlled trial of acupuncture for IBS involved 30 patients. The trail compared 10 sessions of acupuncture plus usual GP care with only usual GP care alone. Consequently, at 3 months, resulted in a statistically and clinically significant difference between groups of 138 points in favour of acupuncture. Therefore affecting their IBS Symptom Severity Score.