Transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation for the recovery of postoperative gastrointestinal function in patients with colorectal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to assess whether transcutaneous electrical acupoint stimulation (TEAS) assists in the recovery of gastrointestinal function after colorectal cancer surgery. METHODS: A comprehensive search for randomized controlled trials from inception to June 10th, 2025, was performed using the following databases: PubMed, Cochrane Library (CENTRAL), Excerpta Medica Database, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP Database for Chinese Technical Periodicals, WanFang Database, and China Biomedical Literature. We assessed the risk of bias in the included studies using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool. RevMan5.4.1 software was used to perform the meta-analysis. Sensitivity analysis, Begg test, and Egger test were conducted using Stata12.0. RESULTS: Twenty-four eligible articles involving 2409 participants were included in the meta-analysis. Our analysis found that TEAS significantly reduced the time to first defecation (mean difference [MD] = -15.74, 95% confidence intervals [CI]: -20.49 to -10.99, P ˂.001), time to first flatus (MD = -13.39, 95% CI: -16.28 to -10.50, P < .001), time to first bowel movement (MD = -11.12, 95% CI: -13.94 to -8.30, P ˂.001), time of postoperative feeding (MD = -11.91, 95% CI: -17.62 to -6.21, P ˂.001), the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting (risk ratio: 0.40, 95% CI: 0.31-0.52, P  < .001). Sensitivity analysis indicated that the results remained constant after the exclusion of any individual study. Funnel plots and Egger tests revealed no significant publication bias. CONCLUSION: TEAS can assist in the recovery of gastrointestinal function after colorectal cancer surgery.