Effects of Self-administered Acupressure in Psychiatric Patients With Constipation

A Randomised Controlled Trial of Self-administered Acupressure in Adult Psychiatric Patients With Constipation

This study is to evaluate the effects of self-administered acupressure therapy for psychiatric in-patients with constipation

Two main research questions include:

1. What are the effects of the standardized self-administered acupressure program on reducing those adult psychiatric patients' symptoms of constipation?
2. What are the psychiatric patients' (participants') perceived benefits and limitations of self-administered acupressure on management of their constipation?

In this study, the participants who met the study criteria and completed the baseline measurement would be randomly assigned into either the self-administered acupressure program, or a sham control group who receive a placebo, non-acupoint pressure. The null hypotheses of this study are:

1. There is no significant difference between the acupressure and sham group immediately and/or two weeks after the completion of intervention on patients' symptom severity of constipation; and
2. There is no significant difference between the acupressure and sham group on patients' perceived quality of life at immediately and two weeks after treatment completion.

Main outcomes of this study include the Constipation Assessment Scale (CAS), Patient Assessment Constipation Quality of Life Questionnaire (PAC-QoL), and the socio-demographic and clinical data collected by a trained assessor who was blind to the intervention assignment of the participants. These data would be measured at recruitment (baseline) and immediately (Post-test 1) and two weeks (Post-test 2) after completion of the 10-day intervention. Qualitative focus group interview data would be collected after Post-test 2 .

Inclusion criteria of psychiatric in-patients are:

1. Hong Kong Chinese residents, aged 18 to 64 years;
2. satisfied with Rome III diagnostic criteria for constipation; and
3. mentally stable and competent for self-care and learning acupressure, as recommended by their attending psychiatrists.

Exclusion criteria of those in-patients are:

1. anatomical and physiological disorders of gastrointestinal tract such as malrotation, fistula and colonic neuropathies;
2. metabolic and endocrine diseases;
3. lead poisoning and vitamin D intoxication;
4. previous training in acupressure;
5. physical disability involved the upper limbs;
6. planned surgery undergoing during study period; and
7. pregnancy.