Effect of Tuina Massage on Gastric Motility and Gastric Emptying in Children with Anorexia Nervosa / 中医杂志

ABSTRACT

ObjectiveTo explore the possible mechanism of pediatric tuina therapy in treating anorexia nervosa. MethodsTotally 120 children with anorexia nervosa were randomly divided into a tuina group and a medication group， with 60 cases in each group. Sixty healthy children undergoing physical examinations were recruited as the healthy control group. Children in the tuina group received traditional pediatric tuina therapy， while those in the medication group received orally chewed Jianwei Xiaoshi tablets. Each treatment course lasted for 7 days， with a 1-day interval between courses， and a total of 4 courses were administered. Before and after treatment， seven indicators including gastric motility frequency， gastric area， gastric area 30 minutes after drinking， anterior-posterior diameter and area during gastric fundus dilation， anterior-posterior diameter and area during gastric fundus contraction were measured using a color Doppler ultrasound diagnostic instrument in children from the healthy control group， tuina group， and medication group. Additionally， gastric emptying rate at 30 minutes， changes in anterior-posterior diameter and area during gastric fundus contraction， and changes in gastric area were compared. ResultsThis study ultimately included 60 healthy children in the control group， 59 children in the tuina group， and 51 children in the medication group. Compared with the control group at baseline， the gastric area and the anterior-posterior diameter and area during gastric fundus contraction increased， while the gastric emptying rate， gastric motility frequency， and changes in anterior-posterior diameter during gastric fundus contraction decreased in both the tuina group and medication group， with only a decrease in gastric area during gastric fundus contraction observed in the tuina group （P＜0.05）. Compared with baseline， after treatment， the gastric emptying rate， gastric motility frequency， and changes in anterior-posterior diameter and area during gastric fundus contraction increased in the tuina group， while the gastric area and area during gastric fundus contraction decreased 30 minutes after treatment； in the medication group， gastric motility frequency and changes in anterior-posterior diameter during gastric fundus contraction increased， while the area during gastric fundus contraction decreased （P＜0.05 or P＜0.01）. Compared with the medication group after treatment， the gastric area decreased 30 minutes after treatment， while the gastric emptying rate and gastric motility frequency increased （P＜0.05）. ConclusionThe possible mechanism of pediatric tuina therapy in treating anorexia nervosa is to promote gastric motility and gastric emptying， thereby improving gastrointestinal dysfunction in children.