Can acupuncture help IBS?

patient have quite severe IBS and this causes agrophobia, anxiety and panic attacks. she has tried altering her diet and using medication but none of them have much effect. This condition is ruining her life and making me very depressed.
she would like to try acupuncture but am abit scared and nervous. Does anyone know if acupuncture is an effective treatment for IBS and is it worth taking the chance?

Answer:There are no studies of acupuncture in the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. However, it was recently reported that electro-acupuncture, in which a small electrical shock is delivered via the acupuncture needle, could cause the stomachs of dogs to empty faster. This is the first clear evidence that acupuncture is able to affect the function of the bowel and suggests that acupuncture might be useful in treating irritable bowel.

Source:Medicinenet.com

I found that most of IBS are misdiagnosed,in fact,a lot of IBS due to soft tissue injuries in back area.

What is your opinion?I knew later research showed :There is no evidence to support the use of acupuncture for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. Acupuncture for irritable bowel syndrome needs further investigation

Can your bra cause irritable bowel syndrome?

Fashion bras can constrict the rib cage by several inches more than conventional bras. The pressure can be so great that it could even affect digestion.
The British School of Osteopathy has noted Irritable Bowel Syndrome and constipation as a result of illfitting bras constricting the digestive process by putting pressure on the diaphragm. Source: dailymail.co.uk
_____________________________________________________________

Visit Dr.Zak Website

Acupuncture in IBS is primarily a placebo response. Based on the small differences found between the AC and SAC groups, a study including 566 patients would be necessary to prove the efficacy of AC over SAC. The placebo response may be predicted by high coping capacity and low sleep quality in individual patients.From GUT online

New IBS Guideline:

IBS patients with diarrhea, or a combination of constipation and diarrhea, should be screened with blood tests for celiac disease;
When IBS patients have alarm features or are over 50 years old, they should have further tests:
Women are twice as likely as men to suffer from IBS, which often begins in young adulthood....

Bacteria in the human gut could produce substances that protect against colon cancer and provide therapy for inflammatory bowel disease. In the journal Microbiology, researchers report initial studies showing that bacteria in the human gut convert linoleic acid, a naturally-occurring fat in the diet, into a form called conjugated linoleic acid which is absorbed by the gut wall.sourse:sciencedaily

The current study showed that IBS patients cannot turn down the amplifier of the pain response, even when expected pain is not dangerous, which makes them more sensitive to even mild discomfort.

A recent study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology suggests that an immune system response may be responsible for IBS symptoms in some patients.

So,When randomized controlled trials of acupuncture for irritable bowel syndrome were evaluated, some trials showed no clear evidence in support of acupuncture as an effective treatment for IBS, although other poor quality trials showed beneficial effects of acupuncture. There is no evidence to support the use of acupuncture for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. Acupuncture for irritable bowel syndrome needs further investigation.

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Probiotic products, which contain living microbes that aid digestion, may help relieve the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome, according to Dr. Nourieh Hoveyda and colleagues from University of Oxford, UK.

Herbal medicines could benefit patients suffering from gastrointestinal (GI) motility disorders that cannot be treated using conventional drug therapy. In a new study, researchers reviewed data on Japanese herbal medicines and found them to be effective in reducing the symptoms of GI disorders such as functional dyspepsia, constipation and postoperative ileus