Background: Haemorrhoidectomy, although an important intervention for the management of haemorrhoids, is associated with a risk of postoperative urinary retention in some patients, impacting prognosis and quality of life. This single-centre retrospective study evaluates the efficacy of acupoint moxibustion in the management of post-haemorrhoidectomy urinary retention.
Methods: Patients who developed urinary retention following haemorrhoidectomy were enrolled and allocated into either a traditional hot compress treatment group or an acupoint moxibustion combined treatment group, according to their postoperative management. The traditional hot compress group received hot compress therapy alone, whereas the combined group received additional moxibustion at Qihai (CV6), Guanyuan (CV4) and Shenque (CV8) acupoints alongside conventional hot compress therapy. Baseline clinical characteristics, improvement in urinary retention and duration of postoperative indwelling catheterisation were compared between the groups. Changes in pelvic floor muscle strength, severity of lower abdominal pain, incidence of adverse reactions and patient comfort (assessed by the General Comfort Questionnaire (GCQ)) were also evaluated.
Results: At one and two weeks post-treatment, the combined treatment group demonstrated a higher overall efficacy rate in improving urinary retention, shorter duration of postoperative indwelling catheterisation, greater recovery of pelvic floor muscle strength, more substantial reductions in Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) pain scores and significantly higher GCQ scores (all p values < 0.05) compared with the traditional hot compress group. Both groups showed improvements in pelvic floor muscle strength, reductions in VAS scores and increases in GCQ scores at one and two weeks post-treatment relative to baseline. The incidence of adverse reactions was 6.00% (3/50) in the traditional group and 2.00% (1/50) in the combined group, with no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05).
Conclusions: Acupoint moxibustion combined with traditional hot compress therapy appears to be an effective and safe approach for managing post-haemorrhoidectomy urinary retention. It significantly improves urinary function, reduces the duration of catheterisation, enhances pelvic floor muscle recovery, alleviates lower abdominal pain and increases patient satisfaction and comfort, with a favourable safety profile.
Keywords: acupoint moxibustion; efficacy; haemorrhoid; postoperative urinary retention.
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