Therapeutic Effect of Nangan-geon for an Elderly Patient with Refractory Abdominal Pain: a Case Report

Abstract

Objectve: To inform a clinical usefulness of Nangan-geon (暖肝煎) decoction to treat a refractory abdominal pain especially in eldery.Methods: This case report presents an 85-year old male patient who had been suffered with a refractory abdominal pain without any abnormality in laboratory test and radiological examination for 5-years. The clinical outcome was observed by numerical rating scale (NRS) of self-reporting method.Results: Based on his previous multiple normal examination results from Western hospitals and clinical features including thin body (19.6 BMI), nocturnal pain around lower abdomen and cold-sensitivity, author diagnosed him as “deficiency and cold of liver-Qi (肝氣虛寒)” similar to intestinal spasm. After prescription with Nangan-geon (暖肝煎) for one month, all symptoms became improved notably (NRS 5), and almost completely recovered as a level of normal condition in 3 months (NRS 1).Conclusion: This study would show the potential of traditional Korean medicine (TKM) therapies for a refractory functional abdominal pain, and especially efficacy of Nangan-geon against cold-pattern of nonspecific abdominal pain in elderly patients.