SynthesisThe Cochrane database of systematic reviews2013
Chinese medicinal herbs for cholelithiasis.
Synthesis in The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 14 citations in OpenAlex.
- Problems lowering the study quality in traditional medicine, introspection from an example of meta-analysis of acupuncture.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2020Pooled it
- Chinese herbal medicines for treating osteoporosis.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2014Pooled it
- Preclinical Evidence ofEvidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2020Review
- Mechanisms Underlying the Prevention and Treatment of Cholelithiasis Using Traditional Chinese Medicine.Evidence-based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM · 2019Review
- Herbal traditional Chinese medicine and its evidence base in gastrointestinal disorders.World journal of gastroenterology · 2015Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCholelithiasis is a common disease of the biliary tract. Chinese medicinal herbs are being used widely as an alternative treatment in people with cholelithiasis, but their beneficial or harmful effects have not been assessed systematically.
objectivesTo assess the beneficial and harmful effects of Chinese medicinal herbs in people with cholelithiasis. SEARCH
methodsWe conducted searches in the Cochrane Hepato-Biliary Group Controlled Trials Register, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) in The Cochrane Library, MEDLINE, EMBASE, Science Citation Index Expanded, Chinese Medicine Conference Disc, and Chinese Bio-Medicine Disc to January 2013. We handsearched four Chinese journals. No language or year of publication restrictions were applied. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised clinical trials studying Chinese medicinal herbs for treatment of cholelithiasis. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Two review authors (SJ, TG) independently extracted data. For dichotomous data, we estimated the risk ratio (RR), and for continuous data, we calculated the mean difference. We also calculated 95% confidence intervals (CI). MAIN
resultsEleven randomised trials with 1205 participants with asymptomatic or mild-to-moderate cholelithiasis were included. None of the randomised clinical trials compared a single Chinese medicinal herb with a Western medicine or with surgery. No placebo-controlled trials were identified. In the trials comparing one Chinese herbal medicine (Gandanxiaoshi tablet) versus another (Aihuodantong tablet), there was no significant difference in the improvement of upper abdominal pain after the end of treatment (RR 1.21; 95% CI 0.71 to 2.05), and the heterogeneity among trials was not substantial. No other outcomes could be assessed. The remaining trials of Chinese medicinal herbs (Qingdan capsule, Danshu capsule, Paishi capsule, Rongdanpaishi capsule), did not offer specific data on symptoms, signs, or change in gallstones that would permit assessment of significant differences in curative effects between the treatment and control groups. No serious adverse events were reported. AUTHORS'
conclusionsThis review reveals no strong evidence that the analysed Chinese medicinal herbs have any beneficial effects on asymptomatic or mild-to-moderate cholelithiasis. Definitive conclusions will require much better designed randomised trials to reduce risk of bias and allow detailed assessment of clinical outcomes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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 OpenQuestion graph.