Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional disorder of the digestive system characterized by recurrent abdominal pain associated with bowel movements or changes in bowel habits. Although there are reviews and guidelines for treating IBS, the complexity and diversity of IBS manifestations make treatment difficult. By detecting and exploring the biological characteristics presented by the relevant meridian point reaction, this project clarified the specificity and regularity of the connection between the acupoint and the Zangfu reflected by this phenomenon, and conducted correlation analysis based on the intestinal flora, tryptophan metabolite levels and related scales of patients with IBS.

This study intends to include 50 healthy volunteers and 50 patients with IBS. The study objects are healthy volunteers and patients diagnosed with IBS from the Third Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medicine University and social recruitment. This study is observational and does not involve randomized methods. At the same time, there is no blindness for subjects, indicators detection and input. The observation indexes were pain sensitivity, thermal radiation characteristics, microcirculation characteristics, biological ultra-weak luminescence, electrical characteristics, intestinal flora characteristics, tryptophan metabolites level and related scales at common acupoints of irritable bowel syndrome.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Inclusion criteria for healthy volunteers:

  1. 18 years old ≤ age ≤75 years old, gender is not limited;
  2. No inflammatory bowel disease, lactose intolerance, intestinal bacterial overgrowth, parasitic infection, drug induced enteritis and other intestinal diseases;
  3. No abdominal pain, frequency of defecation and changes in fecal characteristics in 1 week;
  4. Provide healthy subjects with no obvious abnormalities reported by colonoscopy in the past 1 year;
  5. Healthy subjects who can provide medical examination reports within the past 1 year and have routine physical examination conducted by researchers to confirm that there are no heart and lung diseases, digestive, urinary, blood, endocrine, nervous system and other serious underlying diseases;
  6. No antidiarrheal drugs, antibiotics, gastrointestinal motility drugs or other related drugs affecting clinical studies within 4 weeks;
  7. Clear consciousness, can complete normal communication;
  8. Understands and is willing to comply with the research protocol and sign the informed consent.

• Inclusion criteria for IBS patients:

  1. Patients who can provide colonoscopy report in the past 1 year and meet the Rome IV standard of irritable bowel syndrome and TCM syndrome differentiation type;
  2. Provide medical examination reports within the past 1 year to confirm patients without digestive, circulatory, respiratory, urinary, reproductive, endocrine, nervous system and other malignant tumors and serious underlying diseases;
  3. 18 years old ≤ age ≤75 years old, gender is not limited;
  4. No antidiarrheal drugs, antibiotics, gastrointestinal motility drugs or other related drugs that affect clinical studies have been taken within 4 weeks;
  5. Clear consciousness, can complete normal communication;
  6. Understands and is willing to comply with the research protocol and sign the informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Exclusion criteria for healthy volunteers:

  1. Those who have mental illness, alcohol dependence or a history of drug abuse and cognitive impairment are unable to cooperate with the examination and understanding of the subject;
  2. Female volunteers who are pregnant or lactating, or in ovulation and menstruation period;
  3. Volunteers with current abnormal body temperature;
  4. Subjects currently participating in other clinical trials.

• Exclusion criteria for patients with IBS:

  1. Those who have mental illness, alcohol dependence or a history of drug abuse and cognitive impairment are unable to cooperate with the examination and understanding of the subject;
  2. Pregnant or lactating women or female subjects in ovulation and menstruation period;
  3. Patients with inflammatory bowel disease, lactose intolerance, intestinal bacterial overgrowth, parasitic infections, drug-induced enteritis and other intestinal diseases;
  4. Patients with intestinal diseases such as functional constipation, functional diarrhea, opioid-induced constipation, and non-specific functional bowel disease;
  5. Patients with functional gastrointestinal diseases such as functional dyspepsia, functional heartburn, central abdominal pain syndrome;
  6. Patients with current abnormal body temperature;
  7. Participants who are currently participating in other clinical trials.

This study targets IBS patients and healthy volunteers, among whom IBS patients are required to meet the Rome IV standard for IBS and the Expert Consensus on the Diagnosis and Treatment of IBS in Chinese Medicine (2017).