Bagheri Hossein, Talebi Seyedeh Solmaz, Shahri Bahar, Mottahedi Mobin
Department of Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
Integr Med Res. 2026 Mar;15(1):101227. doi: 10.1016/j.imr.2025.101227. Epub 2025 Aug 15.
Postoperative gastrointestinal dysfunction is a frequent complication after cesarean section (CS), delaying recovery and causing discomfort. This study assessed the effects of chewing gum (CG) and LI4 acupressure-each compared with routine care-on gastrointestinal recovery after elective CS.
In this three-arm randomized controlled trial, 105 women undergoing elective CS were randomly allocated to CG plus routine care, acupressure plus routine care, or routine care alone (n = 35 each). Interventions were applied three times daily for two days. Primary outcomes were time to first gas passage and defecation; secondary outcomes included time to mobilization, postoperative abdominal pain (measured at six time points), and nausea/vomiting incidence. Analyses employed Kaplan-Meier survival curves, repeated-measures ANOVA, and chi-square tests.
Both CG and acupressure groups showed significantly faster recovery than routine care, with shorter times to first gas passage, defecation, and mobilization (all p < 0.001). No significant differences were observed between CG and acupressure for these measures. A significant time × group interaction for pain (p = 0.025) indicated greater and more sustained relief in the acupressure group (all p < 0.05 vs. other groups). Nausea and vomiting rates were lower in intervention groups, though differences were not statistically significant.
Chewing gum and LI4 acupressure each significantly enhanced postoperative gastrointestinal recovery after CS compared with routine care, while acupressure provided superior pain control. These simple, non-pharmacological methods may improve maternal recovery and comfort. Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials,IRCT20200206046395N3 (https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir/).
术后胃肠功能障碍是剖宫产术后常见的并发症，会延迟康复并引起不适。本研究评估了咀嚼口香糖（CG）和针刺合谷穴与常规护理相比，对择期剖宫产术后胃肠功能恢复的影响。
在这项三臂随机对照试验中，105例行择期剖宫产的女性被随机分配至CG加常规护理组、针刺穴位加常规护理组或单纯常规护理组（每组n = 35）。干预措施每天应用3次，共2天。主要结局指标为首次排气和排便时间；次要结局指标包括活动时间、术后腹痛（在6个时间点测量）以及恶心/呕吐发生率。分析采用Kaplan-Meier生存曲线、重复测量方差分析和卡方检验。
CG组和针刺穴位组的恢复均明显快于常规护理组，首次排气、排便和活动时间均较短（所有p < 0.001）。在这些指标上，CG组和针刺穴位组之间未观察到显著差异。疼痛方面存在显著的时间×组间交互作用（p = 0.025），表明针刺穴位组的疼痛缓解更显著且持续时间更长（与其他组相比，所有p < 0.05）。干预组的恶心和呕吐发生率较低，尽管差异无统计学意义。
与常规护理相比，咀嚼口香糖和针刺合谷穴均显著促进了剖宫产术后的胃肠功能恢复，而针刺穴位在疼痛控制方面更具优势。这些简单的非药物方法可能会改善产妇的恢复情况和舒适度。伊朗临床试验注册中心，IRCT20200206046395N3（https://irct.behdasht.gov.ir/）
