Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34521675›Full record

ArticleBMJ open2021

Attitudes of Chinese immigrants in Canada towards the use of Traditional Chinese Medicine for prevention and management of COVID-19: a cross-sectional survey during the early stages of the pandemic.

Yujia Kong, Lance Garrett Shaver, Fuyan Shi, Lixia Yang, Weiguo Zhang, Xiaolin Wei, Yun Zhu, Yiran Wang, Peizhong Peter Wang

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.9field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
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

9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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  7. Equity in the Access of Chinese Immigrants to Healthcare Services in Portugal.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023
    Article
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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

9 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.

Yujia Kong *School of Public Health, Weifang Medical University, Weifang, Shandong, China.
Lance Garrett Shaver *Faculty of Medicine, The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Fuyan Shi *School of Public Health, Weifang Medical University, Weifang, Shandong, China.
Lixia YangDepartment of Psychology, Ryerson University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Weiguo ZhangDepartment of Sociology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Xiaolin WeiDalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-3076-2650
Yun ZhuSchool of Public Health, Tianjin Medical University, Wuqing District, Tianjin, China.ORCID 0000-0002-5864-0794
Yiran WangDalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Peizhong Peter WangFaculty of Medicine, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada pwang@mun.ca.ORCID 0000-0002-0682-6861
University of Toronto · CAWeifang Medical University · CNCentre for Social Innovation · CAMemorial University of Newfoundland · CAToronto Metropolitan University · CAUniversity of British Columbia · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectionThe objective of this study was to assess attitudes towards the use of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for COVID-19 among Chinese immigrants in Canada during the early stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.

methodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in April 2020 in Canada. Individuals aged 16 or older who were of Chinese origin and living in Canada at the time of the survey were invited to participate in an online survey. Descriptive and univariate statistics were performed to describe participant attitudes towards various preventive and treatment measures for COVID-19. Multiple logistic regression was used to identify independent associations with sociodemographic factors and attitudes.

resultsA total of 754 eligible respondents were included in the analysis. 65.8% of the participants were female, 77.2% had a university degree or higher and 28.6% were 55 years of age or older. Overall, 48.8% of the study participants believed that TCM was effective in preventing COVID-19% and 46.2% would use TCM if they had COVID-19-related symptoms. However, the corresponding numbers for western medicine were 20.8% and 39.9%, which were statistically lower (p<0.01). Older participants (55+vs <35, OR=3.55 (95% CI 2.05 to 6.14); 35-54 vs <35, OR=1.98 (95% CI 1.27 to 3.08)) and those who were dissatisfied with their income (OR=2.47(95% CI 1.56 to 3.92)) were more likely to believe TCM was effective against COVID-19. Similarly, older participants (55+vs <35, OR=3.13 (95% CI 1.79 to 5.46); 35-54 vs <35, OR=2.25 (95% CI 1.35 to 3.74)), females (OR=1.60 (95% CI 1.15 to 2.23)), and those born in mainland China (OR=10.49 (95% CI 2.32 to 47.39)) were more likely to use TCM if they had symptoms of COVID-19.

conclusionDespite the lack of scientific evidence to support its use, TCM was widely believed by Chinese immigrants in Canada to be an effective means of preventing COVID-19 and many also stated they would use it if they were experiencing symptoms of COVID-19.

Indexed as

COVID-19Emigrants and ImmigrantsAttitudeCanadaChinaCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMedicine, Chinese TraditionalPandemicsSARS-CoV-2complementary medicineCOVID-19epidemiologypublic health

Identifiers

PMID34521675
PMCPMC8441218
OpenAlexW3200586143

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
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 OpenQuestion graph.