Treatment of Posttraumatic Abdominal Autonomic Neuropathy Manifesting as Functional Dyspepsia and Chronic Constipation: An Integrative East-West Approach

A 52-year-old male with a history of spinal cord injury and cauda equina syndrome resulting in neurogenic bladder presented with chronic constipation and functional dyspepsia that was refractory to medical management. He was treated with an integrative East-West approach including acupuncture, trigger point injections, and Tui Na massage. Both his pain and constipation improved after a series of treatments, and this improvement was largely sustained at 2-year follow-up. This patient's symptoms are consistent with damage to the visceral parasympathetic nervous system. Interestingly, many studies evaluating the mechanisms of acupuncture point to restoration of parasympathetic tone as a mechanism of action. In this article, we describe a case of complex functional gastrointestinal disorders associated with posttraumatic autonomic neuropathy that was refractory to pharmacotherapy and was successfully treated with an integrative East-West approach.