Den här översättningen är inte klar ännu. Den här sidan är just nu på engelska.

Gå till den engelska sidan

Cure My Disease

Don't miss your cure!

 Log in / Sign up

Can needles ease tummy troubles? new study tests electro-acupuncture for IBS-C

NCT ID NCT06219707

Symptom relief Sponsor: Nanyang Technological University Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This completed pilot study tested whether electro-acupuncture can improve symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome with constipation (IBS-C). Sixty IBS-C patients were randomly assigned to receive either real electro-acupuncture or a sham (fake) version. The study also collected blood, urine, and stool samples to explore how acupuncture might affect gut bacteria. The goal was to see if real acupuncture leads to better pain relief and more regular bowel movements compared to the sham treatment.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
electro-acupuncture
What this could lead to
If it works, this could offer a non-drug option for managing IBS-C symptoms like pain and constipation.
What could go wrong
This is a small pilot study (60 participants) with no phase, so results are preliminary and may not apply to everyone. The sham control may also show some benefit, making it hard to prove real effect.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

60 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Sep 2024

Finished

May 2026

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

21 to 65 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Fulfilment of the Rome IV criteria for IBS-C; 2. Age of 21 to 65 years (inclusive); 3. Weekly average of worst daily abdominal pain score of ≥3 (0-10 scale) for at least 12 weeks before the first visit and during screening period; 4. \<3 complete spontaneous bowel movements (CSBMs) per week for at least 12 weeks before the first visit and during screening period; 5. Written informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Pregnancy or breast-feeding; 2. Medical history of inflammatory bowel diseases, carbohydrate malabsorption, hormonal disorder, known allergies to food additives, and/or any other serious diseases; 3. History of gastrointestinal tract segment removal or bariatric surgery for obesity; 4. Appendectomy or cholecystectomy within the past 2 months, or other abdominal surgeries within the past 6 months prior to trial enrollment; 5. Unstable medical conditions that could be associated with abdominal pain or discomfort and could potentially influence the assessments in this trial (e.g., chronic kidney disease, endometriosis, lactose intolerance); 6. Diagnosed with primary severe mental illness; 7. Patients who have received acupuncture treatment in last three months, or took concomitant medication with affect gastrointestinal motility or visceral sensation, such as antidiarrheal agent, antidepressant, narcotic analgesic, and anticholinergic; 8. Alcoholism or drug abuse in past 1 year; 9. Having needle phobia or allergy to acupuncture needle materials; 10. Antibiotics and probiotics/prebiotics usage in the previous month; 11. Participating in other clinical studies.

Get updates

Get notified about this study

Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Irritable bowel syndrome with constipation are added.

Vår säkerhetsrekommendation!

Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor

Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

irritable bowel syndrome

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Irritable bowel syndrome with constipation

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Nanyang Technological University, School of Biological Sciences

    Singapore, Singapore, 637551, Singapore

More trials for these conditions

Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.