Transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation improves functional dyspepsia with sleep disturbance via enhanced vagal activity: a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Functional dyspepsia (FD) is often comorbid with sleep disturbance. Transcutaneous auricular vagal nerve stimulation (taVNS) is a new and non-invasive therapeutic option. This study aimed to investigate its effects and possible mechanisms on FD with sleep disturbance.

Autonomic-cyclooxygenase-2 Mechanisms of Electroacupuncture on Thermal Injury-induced Gastric Dysmotility in Rats.

Background And Objectives: Gastrointestinal dysmotility commonly follows thermal injuries, such as burns. This study aimed to investigate the effects and mechanisms of electroacupuncture (EA) on burn-induced gastric dysmotility in rats.

Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into sham and thermal injury groups subjected to a 60% scald burn.

Abnormal anorectal manometric and sensory functions in patients with functional anorectal pain.

Background: High-resolution anorectal manometry (HARM) is widely used for diagnosis and assessment of constipation and fecal incontinence. However, limited information is available on HARM-identifiable characteristics in patients with functional anorectal pain (FARP). This study explored the pathogenesis of FARP by investigating their anorectal physiological and psychological characteristics using HARM.

Progressive impairment in gastric and duodenal slow waves and autonomic function during progression of type 2 diabetes in rats.

The abnormalities of gastrointestinal (GI) slow waves play key roles in the pathophysiology of diabetic gastroparesis, which is highly prevalent in type 2 diabetes (T2D). Although relatively well-investigated in diabetic enteric neuropathy, abnormalities and progressive impairments of gastric slow waves (GSWs) and duodenal slow waves (DSWs) are underinvestigated during the progression of T2D. The aim of this study was to explore alterations in GSW and DSW during the development of diabetes induced by high-fat diet (HFD) followed by a low dose of streptozotocin (STZ).

Effect and Mechanism of Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Gastric Motility: A Preliminary Rodent Study.

Background: Patients with functional dyspepsia often exhibit gastrointestinal motor disorders associated with gastric myoelectrical dysrhythmia. This study investigated the effects of vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) in a rodent model of gastric slow-wave dysrhythmia induced by colorectal distention (CRD).

Materials And Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were implanted with wires in the gastric body to record gastric slow waves and in the left cervical vagal nerve for stimulation.

Accelerative Effects of Transcutaneous Electrical Acustimulation on Postoperative Recovery After Thoracolumbar Vertebral Fracture Associated With Suppressed Sympathetic Activity and Interleukin-6.

Objectives: Gastrointestinal (GI) disturbance is a frequent complication in patients with thoracolumbar vertebral fracture (TVF). Transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) has been reported to effectively accelerate postoperative GI function recovery after abdominal surgery. This study aimed to investigate the effects of TEA on postoperative recovery and the associated mechanisms.

Small Intestinal Slow Wave Dysrhythmia and Blunted Postprandial Responses in Diabetic Rats.

Background: Gastric dysmotility and gastric slow wave dysrhythmias have been well documented in patients with diabetes. However, little is known on the effect of hyperglycemia on small intestine motility, such as intestinal slow waves, due to limited options in measuring its activity. Moreover, food intake and digestion process have been reported to alter the small intestine motility in normal rats, but their roles in that of diabetic rats remains unknown.

Efficacy and Safety of Noninvasive Electrical Neuromodulation for Treatment of Functional Constipation: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background: Functional constipation (FC) is a prevalent disorder with large disease burden and high associated cost. Noninvasive electrical neuromodulation (NEN) has been studied for treatment of FC, but its overall efficacy and safety remain unclear. This meta-analysis evaluates the efficacy and safety of NEN for treatment of FC.

Comparisons of different electrical stimulation modalities for treating visceral pain in a rodent model of irritable bowel syndrome.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of different electrical stimulation methods (bilateral electroacupuncture (BEA), unilateral EA (UEA), transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA, stimulation via surface electrodes placed at acupoints), and sacral nerve stimulation (SNS)) on visceral pain in a rodent model of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Ten-day-old male and female pups were treated with 0.2 ml of 0.

Integrative Effects of Transcutaneous Electrical Acustimulation and Autonomic-Endocrine Mechanisms on Postprocedural Recovery in Patients With Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio-Pancreatography.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the integrative effects and mechanisms of transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) on postprocedural recovery from endoscopic retrograde cholangio-pancreatography (ERCP).

Materials And Methods: A total of 86 patients for elective ERCP were randomly ordered to receive TEA (n = 43) at acupoints PC6 and ST36 or Sham-TEA (n = 43) at sham points from 24 hours before ERCP (pre-ERCP) to 24 hours after ERCP (PE24). Scores of gastrointestinal (GI) motility-related symptoms and abdominal pain, gastric slow waves, and autonomic functions were recorded through the spectral analysis of heart rate variability; meanwhile, circulatory levels of inflammation cytokines of tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin (IL)-10 and GI hormones of motilin, ghrelin, cholecystokinin (CCK), and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) were assessed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

The impact of transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) on rectal distension-induced pain in patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)-A study to determine the optimal TEA delivery modalities and effects on rectal sensation and autonomic function.

Background: Treatment options for abdominal pain in IBS are inadequate. TEA was reported effective treatment of disorders of gut-brain interaction but its mechanism of action and optimal delivery method for treating pain in IBS are unknown. This study aims to determine the most effective TEA parameter and location to treat abdominal pain in patients with IBS-Constipation and delineate the effect of TEA on rectal sensation and autonomic function.

Transcutaneous Electrical Acustimulation Improves Constipation Symptoms and Accelerates Colonic Transit in Patients With Slow Transit Constipation Through Autonomic Mechanism.

Objectives: Nearly half of patients with slow transit constipation (STC) are not completely satisfied with their traditional remedies. We aimed to evaluate the therapeutic value and possible involved mechanism of transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) at ST36 in patients with STC.

Materials And Methods: Seventy patients with STC were randomly divided into TEA (n = 35) and sham-TEA (n = 35) to undergo a two-week treatment with TEA at ST36 or sham point.

Neuromodulation for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease: A Systematic Review.

Background And Objectives: In this systematic review, we evaluated the efficacy, mechanisms and safety of three neuromodulation therapies in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), including the effect of neuromodulation therapies on symptoms and key GERD pathophysiologies, lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure, esophageal motility, gastric motility, and parasympathetic activity. The first therapy is LES electrical stimulation using an implantable electrical stimulator, the second is transcutaneous electrical acustimulation, and the third is manual acupuncture.

Methods: A systematic review of literature according to the PRISMA guidelines was performed.

Non-invasive neuromodulation: an emerging intervention for visceral pain in gastrointestinal disorders.

Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, which extend from the esophagus to the anus, are the most common diseases of the GI tract. Among these disorders, pain, encompassing both abdominal and visceral pain, is a predominant feature, affecting the patients' quality of life and imposing a substantial financial burden on society. Pain signals originating from the gut intricately shape brain dynamics.

Intestinal Electrical Stimulation Synchronized With Intestinal Slow Wave Ameliorates Glucagon-Induced Hyperglycemia in Rats.

Background: Synchronized intestinal electrical stimulation (SIES), in which intestinal electrical stimulation (IES) is delivered in synchronization with the intrinsic slow wave of small intestine, was previously reported to be more potent in accelerating small intestine transit than IES delivered at fixed frequency and phase. We hypothesized that SIES is more potent in suppressing postprandial blood glucose by enhancing the release of glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and insulin.

Materials And Methods: Rats underwent long-term implant of two pairs of electrodes at the duodenum for IES and SIES, respectively.

Best Parameters of Heart Rate Variability for Assessing Autonomic Responses to Brief Rectal Distention in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

Heart rate variability (HRV) has been used to measure autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity noninvasively. The purpose of this study was to identify the most suitable HRV parameters for ANS activity in response to brief rectal distension (RD) in patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). IBS patients participated in a five-session study.

Acceleration of postoperative recovery with brief intraoperative vagal nerve stimulation mediated the autonomic mechanism.

Introduction: Postoperative recovery is largely dependent on the restoration of gastrointestinal motility. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects and mechanisms of intraoperative vagus nerve stimulation (iVNS) on postoperative recovery from abdominal surgery in rats.

Methods: The Nissen fundoplication surgery was performed on two groups of rats: sham-iVNS group and iVNS group (VNS was performed during surgery).

An efficient online peak detection algorithm for synchronized intestinal electrical stimulation and its application for treating diabetes.

Obesity is one of leading risk factors for type 2 diabetes and other types of chronic diseases. Synchronized intestinal electrical stimulation (SIES) has been explored for treating obesity and diabetes. In SIES, electrical stimulation is delivered to the small intestine in synchronization with the intrinsic intestinal myoelectrical activity (its basic rhythm is called slow wave) and therefore, the accurate detection of intestinal slow waves is critically important for SIES.

Diagnostic Methods for Evaluation of Gastric Motility-A Mini Review.

Gastric motility abnormalities are common in patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction, such as functional dyspepsia and gastroparesis. Accurate assessment of the gastric motility in these common disorders can help understand the underlying pathophysiology and guide effective treatment. A variety of clinically applicable diagnostic methods have been developed to objectively evaluate the presence of gastric dysmotility, including tests of gastric accommodation, antroduodenal motility, gastric emptying, and gastric myoelectrical activity.

Electrophysiology as a Tool to Decipher the Network Mechanism of Visceral Pain in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders.

Abdominal pain, including visceral pain, is prevalent in functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorders (FGIDs), affecting the overall quality of a patient's life. Neural circuits in the brain encode, store, and transfer pain information across brain regions. Ascending pain signals actively shape brain dynamics; in turn, the descending system responds to the pain through neuronal inhibition.

Auricular Vagus Nerve Stimulation Improves Visceral Hypersensitivity and Gastric Motility and Depression-like Behaviors via Vago-Vagal Pathway in a Rat Model of Functional Dyspepsia.

Unlabelled: Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation was recently reported to have a therapeutic potential for functional dyspepsia (FD). This study aimed to explore the integrative effects and mechanisms of auricular vagus nerve stimulation (aVNS) in a rodent model of FD.

Methods: We evaluated the effects of aVNS on visceral hypersensitivity, gastric motility and open field test (OFT) activity in iodoacetamide (IA)-treated rats.

The Overlap Subgroup of Functional Dyspepsia Exhibits More Severely Impaired Gastric and Autonomic Functions.

Goals: A combination of multiple tests was introduced to noninvasively investigate the differences in pathophysiologies among functional dyspepsia (FD) subgroups, including postprandial distress syndrome (PDS), epigastric pain syndrome (EPS), and overlap.

Background: It has not been extensively evaluated whether different pathophysiologies are involved in FD subgroups.

Study: This multicenter study included 364 FD patients fulfilling Rome IV criteria and 47 healthy controls.

Roles of Heart Rate Variability in Assessing Autonomic Nervous System in Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders: A Systematic Review.

Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) and gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) disease affect a large global population and incur substantial health care costs. Impairment in gut-brain communication is one of the main causes of these disorders. The central nervous system (CNS) provides its inputs to the enteric nervous system (ENS) by modulating the autonomic nervous system (ANS) to control the gastrointestinal functions.

Corrigendum: Wenshen-Jianpi prescription, a Chinese herbal medicine, improves visceral hypersensitivity in a rat model of IBS-D by regulating the MEK/ERK signal pathway.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2022.

Sustained ameliorating effects and autonomic mechanisms of transcutaneous electrical acustimulation at ST36 in patients with chronic constipation.

Background And Aims: The treatment of chronic constipation is still a great challenge in clinical practice. This study aimed to determine the efficacy and sustained effects of transcutaneous electrical acustimulation (TEA) at acupoint ST36 on the treatment of chronic constipation and explore possible underlying mechanisms.

Methods: Forty-four patients with chronic constipation were recruited and randomly assigned to a TEA group or sham-TEA group.