Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34528735›Full record

SynthesisJournal of evaluation in clinical practice2022

Chinese herbal medicine ("3 medicines and 3 formulations") for COVID-19: rapid systematic review and meta-analysis.

Yangzihan Wang, Trisha Greenhalgh, Jon Wardle, Oxford TCM Rapid Review Team

Abstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of evaluation in clinical practice, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
17citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

17 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Yangzihan WangPopulation Health Science Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-2797-1619
Trisha GreenhalghThe Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-2369-8088
Jon WardleNational Centre for Naturopathic Medicine, Southern Cross University, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-8813-3542
Oxford TCM Rapid Review Team

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTo evaluate the evidence behind claims that Chinese Herbal Medicine, specifically "three medicines and three formulations" (3M3F, comprising Jinhua Qinggan, Lianhua Qingwen, Xuebijing, Qingfei Paidu, Huashi Baidu, and Xuanfei Baidu), is an effective treatment for COVID-19.

methodsWe searched PubMed, MEDLINE and CNKI databases, preprint servers, clinical trial registries and supplementary sources for Chinese- or English-language randomized trials or non-randomized studies with comparator groups, which tested the constituents of 3M3F in the treatment of COVID-19 up to September 2020. Primary outcome was change in disease severity. Secondary outcomes included various symptoms. Meta-analysis (using generic inverse variance random effects model) was performed when there were two or more studies reporting on the same symptom.

resultsOf 607 articles identified, 13 primary studies (6 RCTs and 7 retrospective non-randomized comparative studies) with 1467 participants met our final inclusion criteria. Studies were small and had significant methodological limitations, most notably potential bias in assessment of outcomes. No study convincingly demonstrated a statistically significant impact on change in disease severity. Eight studies reported sufficiently similar secondary outcomes to be included in a meta-analysis. Some statistically significant impacts on symptoms, chest CT manifestations, laboratory variables and length of stay were demonstrated, but such findings were sparse and many remain unreplicated.

conclusionsThese findings neither support nor refute the claim that 3M3F alters the severity of COVID-19 or alleviates symptoms. More rigorous studies are required to properly ascertain the potential role of Chinese Herbal Medicine in COVID-19.

Indexed as

COVID-19COVID-19 Drug TreatmentDrugs, Chinese HerbalClinical Trials as TopicHumansRetrospective StudiesSARS-CoV-2Drugs, Chinese Herbalxuanfei baiduCOVID-19herbal medicinemeta-analysissystematic review

Identifiers

PMID34528735
PMCPMC8657519

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.