Efficacy of Traditional Chinese Medicine Combined with the Six-Qi Acupuncture Technique on Gastric Motility and Anxiety Symptoms in Patients with Functional Dyspepsia Accompanied by Anxiety

Abstract

Introduction and objectives

Functional dyspepsia (FD) accompanied by anxiety is closely associated with impaired gastric motility and dysregulation of the gut–brain axis. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Jiawei Xiaoyao Wan, the six-qi acupuncture technique, and their combination in improving gastric motility and anxiety symptoms in patients with FD and comorbid anxiety.

Patients and methods

In this single-center, prospective study, 120 patients were assigned to a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) group, an acupuncture group, or a combination group, with 40 patients in each group. Primary outcomes included gastric emptying half-time (T1/2), gastric retention rate, and electrogastrography parameters. Secondary outcomes included Nepean dyspepsia symptom index (NDS), Hamilton anxiety rating scale (HAMA), generalized anxiety disorder scale (GAD-7), and 36-item short form health survey (SF-36) scores. Exploratory analyses examined gut–brain coupling, response-pattern distribution, and a global therapeutic index integrating four key outcome variables.

Results

All groups showed significant improvement in gastric motility and anxiety, with the combination group exhibiting the greatest benefit. The overall pattern of improvement was graded as follows: combination > acupuncture > TCM. Correlation analyses revealed the strongest synchrony between restoration of gastric motility and improvement in emotional and symptom outcomes in the combination group, indicating stronger gut–brain axis coupling. Dual-responder rates were highest in the combination group (30.0%) and lowest in the TCM group. The global therapeutic index further suggested a greater overall combined effect compared with either monotherapy. No serious adverse events were observed.

Conclusions

Jiawei Xiaoyao Wan combined with six-qi acupuncture was associated with greater overall improvements in gastric motility, dyspeptic symptoms, and anxiety, suggesting that it may serve as an effective and safe integrative therapeutic approach for FD with anxiety.