Clinical Efficacy of Infantile Massage in the Treatment of Infant Functional Constipation: A Meta-Analysis
Liu Z, Gang L, Yunwei M, Lin L · Frontiers in Public Health · 2021 June 11
DOI 10.3389/fpubh.2021.663581
Objective
Functional constipation in children is a common disease that causes a psychological burden on infants and young children across the world. In recent years, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) infant massage has been used as a complementary and alternative therapy, and its effectiveness and safety have been proven, attracting the attention of numerous researchers. Our study aimed to compare the influence of infant massage intervention on defecation frequency and consistency, determine the effectiveness, and safety of infant massage in the treatment of infant functional constipation, and obtain high-quality clinical evidence.
Conclusions
TCM infant massage can increase defecation frequency and reduce the symptoms of constipation in children suffering from functional constipation; in addition, the clinical trial showed beneficial effects. Since some of the RCTs featured a very small sample size, the reliability and validity of our study's conclusion may have been affected as well; therefore, the explanation should be treated with some caution.
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