Clinical Study Of Applying Chinese Traditional Medicine To The Umbilicus Combined With Ginger Moxibustion In Treating Children Autumn Diarrhea Of Cold-dampness Type

Objective:To observe the clinical effects of applying wenchangzhixie powder to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion on the children autumn diarrhea of cold-dampness type. In this study, based on the therapeutic methods of invigorating spleen to eliminate dampness and warming yang-qi to check diarrhea, applying wenchangzhixie powder to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion was used to treat the children autumn diarrhea of cold-dampness type. The stool frequency, the character and color of stool, the change of patients’ physical signs and the scores of symptoms of traditional Chinese medicine were observed not only before the treatment but also after the treatment. The routine examination of the blood, the urine and the stool and the pathogenic detection were applied to every patient. In addition, adverse effects during the treatment were recorded to assess the safety of the therapy. All mentioned above were carried out to identify the effects of applying wenchangzhixie powder to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion on the children autumn diarrhea of cold-dampness type.Methods:70 patients of the children autumn diarrhea of cold-dampness type met the inclusive criteria were selected and were randomly divided into two groups: the experimental group (n=35,18 male and 17 female) and the control group (n=35, 20 male and 15 female). All patients in the experimental group received wenchangzhixie powder application to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion. The Chinese herbs including the atractylodes rhizome, the evodia rutaecarpa and the cinnamon were pulverized evenly into powder with a proportion (atractylodes rhizome:evodia rutaecarpa:cinnamon=3:1:1), which compose the wenchangzhixie powder. Then the wenchangzhixie powder was stirred thickly with some water. The supine children patients received the wenchangzhixie powder application to the umbilicus, then a round piece of ginger (diameter of 2cm and thickness of 0.2cm) covered the umbilicus. The lighted moxa was handled over the ginger about 3cm from the skin. Mild moxibustion was applied to make the skin flushed up for about 15min. Then the ginger was removed and the powder reserved in the umbilicus with a patch (5cm X5cm) covered on it for 8h per day, totally for 3 days. The patients in the control group only received the wenchangzhixie powder application to the umbilicus without the ginger moxibustion. All the therapy procedures were carried out when the children were quiet or sleeping. The therapy would be cancelled immediately if any allergy symptom arises. The stool frequency, the character and color of stool, the change of patients’ physical signs and the scores of symptoms of traditional Chinese medicine were observed not only before the treatment but also after the treatment. The routine examination of the blood, the urine and the stool and the pathogenic detection were applied to every patient. In addition, adverse effects during the treatment were recorded to assess the safety of the therapy. The efficacy of the treatment was assessed according to the clinical study guidelines of traditional Chinese medicine and new drugs. The data were collected and analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics 17.0.Results:The experimental group and the control group both included 35 patients without deletion cases. With the statistical analysis, the differences in the patients’ gender, age, the course of disease and the severity of patients’ condition were not statistically significant (P>0.05), as a result of consistent baseline comparable. Compared with the control group, the experimental group was better in the total clinical efficacy (P<0.01), the difference was significant. The scores of symptoms of traditional Chinese medicine were decreased both in the two groups, however, the experimental group was better than the control group (P<0.05). Moreover, compared with the control group, the experimental group was better in reducing the stool frequency and improving the stool character, in relieving the vomiting and the abdominal pain, in improving the complexion and the poor appetite (P< 0.05). The experimental group was better than the control group in improving the mental state (P<0.01), the difference was significant. However, there was no statistical difference between the two groups in improving the fever situation, the nasal congestion and the runny nose (P>0.05). There were no adverse effects during the therapy and there were no obvious abnormalities in the routine examination of the blood, the urine and the stool and the pathogenic detection.Conclusion:The therapy of applying wenchangzhixie powder to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion on the children autumn diarrhea of cold-dampness type was safe, efficacious, easy to operate and acceptable. Especially, it was more efficacious than the single wenchangzhixie powder application to the umbilicus. The therapy of applying wenchangzhixie powder to the umbilicus combined with ginger moxibustion was efficacious in reducing the stool frequency and improving the stool character, in relieving the vomiting and the abdominal pain, in improving the complexion, the poor appetite and the mental state. This therapy is worth to apply and promote clinically.