Applications of meridian electrical conductance for renal colic: a prospective study

Renal colic caused by ureteral stone is commonly encountered in the emergency department (ED). This study was designed to measure meridian electrical conductance of patients with ureteral stone in emergency settings.

A cohort of patients who had ureteral calculus and acute renal colic and who had visited the ED was enrolled in this study. A device, the design of which is based on the Ryodoraku theory, was used to measure the meridian electrical conductance of patients in the ED. Sixty (60) patients (aged 42.0 +/- 12.6 years) who had a primary ED diagnosis of ureteral calculus or renal colic were enrolled. Thirty (30) healthy volunteers (aged 40.8 +/- 11.7 years) were recruited to serve as controls.

Statistical analysis showed that (1) the average electrical conductance of the patient group was statistically lower than that of the control group (p < 0.01), (2) the average index of sympathovagal balance of the patient group was statistically higher than that of the control group (p < 0.01), (3) the average coefficient of variation of the electrical conductance and index of sympathovagal balance in the patient group was statistically different from that in the control group (p < 0.01), and (4) the patients who needed intervention had a higher autonomic nervous imbalance than the patients who had spontaneous stone passage (p < 0.01).

Measures of electrical conductance, especially the index of sympathovagal balance, may be used as valuable supplementary diagnostic methods for selective intervention in patients with acute renal colic.