Abstract
Objectives : This comparative study aimed to identify the effect of the Buddeumi(cupping-and-moxibustion device) therapy and moxibustion-only therapy on treating constipation of stroke patients who were admitted in the hospital of oriental medicine. The research design was a nonequivalent control group pretest-posttest design. Methods : The subjects of the study consisted of 23 stroke patients, and they were divided into two groups : one was the experimental group of 11 patients and the other was the control group of 12 patients. The Buddeumi therapy and the moxibustion-only therapy were given respectively. Each Buddeumi and moxibustion-only therapies on the 天樞(ST25, right & left) in abdomen were administered to the each group for 40 minutes a total at 10 times. The posttest included the frequency of defecation with the Constipation Assessment Scale every day for one week after the experiment. The data were analyzed by the $x^2$ test, t-test, Fisher exact test, and repeated measures ANCOVA using SPSS/WIN 12.0 program. Results : The results were as follows : First, Hypothesis 1 : 'The patients who are given the Buddeumi therapy in the experimental group have a lower Constipation Assessment Scale than the control group.' was supported(F=4.367, P=0.049). Second, Hypothesis 2 : 'The patients who are given meridian acupressure in the experimental group have a higher frequency of defecation per week than the control group.' was supported(F=0.947, P=0.034). Accordingly, 'The patients who are given the Buddeumi therapy in experimental group have a higher effect on constipation than the control group.' was supported. Conclusion : The Buddeumi therapy reduced the constipation assessment scale of stroke patients and increased the frequency of their defacation per week. Therefore, the Buddeumi therapy could be an effective treatment for constipation of stroke patients.
