BACKGROUND: Spinal cord injury (SCI) survivors often experience constipation, which contributes to a reduced sense of well-being and a lower quality of life. Acupressure offers a non-pharmacological and non-invasive alternative therapy for treating constipation. OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of home-based acupressure on constipation and subjective well-being among SCI survivors. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS AND INTERVENTIONS: This randomized controlled trial randomly assigned 80 adults from Hong Kong with SCI to two study groups. Using a video demonstration filmed by a registered traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, the intervention group performed home-based acupressure (self-administered or caregiver-assisted) twice daily, 15 min/session, for 10 consecutive days. The control group performed manual light touching of the abdomen with the same frequency and duration as the intervention group. Both groups received defecation education through a structured booklet. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: The primary outcome was constipation severity. Secondary outcomes included bowel habits, psychological well-being, and quality of life. Focus group interviews were conducted after the intervention to collect subjective feedback from participants. RESULTS: Significant group-by-time interaction effects on constipation severity (P = 0.005) and quality of life (P = 0.001) revealed that home-based acupressure produced better results than the control. These treatment effects persisted at the one-month follow-up and continued to have a large effect size (Cohen's d > 0.8). Compared to the control group, the acupressure group also had improvements in anxiety (Cohen's d = 0.69) and depression (Cohen's d = 0.72) at the end of the intervention period. Three qualitative categories were identified from the focus group interviews: improvements in bowel function and management; reduced psychological distress following relief from constipation; and acceptability of home-based acupressure. CONCLUSION: Acupressure effectively relieves constipation, enhances psychological well-being, and improves quality of life in people with SCI. These data provide novel evidence supporting the use of home-based acupressure as an acceptable and effective therapy for treating constipation after SCI. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05558657). Please cite this article as: Li MQ, Li Y, Lam W, Yeung WF, Ho YS, Li JY, Sun TC, Yuen S, Hu YL, Yorke J. Home-based acupressure for managing constipation and subjective well-being in spinal cord injury survivors: A randomized controlled trial. J Integr Med. 2025; 23(6):660-669.
Humans ; Acupressure/methods* ; Constipation/psychology* ; Male ; Female ; Spinal Cord Injuries/complications* ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Quality of Life ; Aged

We reported a local family cluster of 6 confirmed COVID-19 cases among 29 attendees of a Chinese New Year family dinner gathering in a restaurant, with 1 additional case from secondary transmission. This report illustrates that the public should maintain physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: Hong Kong SAR (China) achieved measles elimination status in 2016, and the incidence of measles infection had been low over the past few years. However, the Centre for Health Protection (CHP) at the Department of Health was notified on 22 March 2019 of an outbreak of three cases of measles infection among workers at the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). Methods: We reviewed notifications of measles received by CHP from 1 January to 17 May 2019. We defined a confirmed case of measles as having laboratory evidence of measles infection. All confirmed cases among airport workers or those with epidemiological information suggesting they had been infected by contact with airport workers were included in the review. We described the epidemiological features and reviewed the control measures against the outbreak. Results: We identified 33 cases, 29 of which were among airport workers. They comprised 22 men and 11 women, aged 20–49 years (median 25 years). The majority of people with confirmed measles presented with fever and rash. All required hospitalization. None developed complications. Control measures, including enhanced environmental hygiene and improved ventilation at HKIA and vaccinations for the airport community, were implemented. Discussion Early recognition of the outbreak and prompt control measures, especially targeted vaccination of the exposed population, effectively controlled the outbreak in just two weeks.