The Effectiveness of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) as an Adjunct Treatment on Stable COPD Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), including Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) and acupuncture, exhibits beneficial effects on stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) such as improving lung function and reducing exacerbation. Previous research studies have examined either CHM or acupuncture alone, which are not the usual practice in TCM clinic setting. We conduct a systematic review for evaluating the clinical effectiveness and safety of TCM by combining CHM and acupuncture. Methods. Databases are searched from inception to November 2019. Randomized controlled trials examining either acupuncture or CHM on stable COPD are included. Primary outcomes include lung functions, exacerbations, and COPD assessment test. Secondary outcomes include quality of life, TCM syndrome score and effective rate, and 6-minute walk distance. Two independent reviewers extract data and assess the quality of evidence and generate meta-analysis and risk of bias by STATA. This protocol follows the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) guidelines. Results. 100 randomized controlled trials (8291 participants) were included to compare add-on Chinese medicine treatment with conventional treatment (CT). Combining CHM with CT improves FEV1 (MD: 0.18, 95% CI: 0.08, 0.28), exacerbation rate (MD: -0.29, 95% CI: -0.61, 0.03), COPD assessment test (MD: -2.16, 95% CI: -3.44, -0.88), TCM syndrome score (MD: -3.96, 95% CI: -5.41, -2.51) and effective rate (RR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.80, 0.93), and 6-minute walk test (MD: 37.81, 95% CI: 20.90, 54.73). No serious adverse events were reported. Risk of bias: low to unclear. Conclusions. This review identifies sufficient moderate-to-low-quality evidence to suggest TCM as an adjunct treatment for stable COPD patients. Though heterogeneity was low among studies, the results were limited and the quality of evidence was low or very low based on small sample sizes and risk of bias. Future studies with larger sample sizes are warranted.

Automated summary

A systematic review of 100 randomized controlled trials revealed that combining Chinese herbal medicine with conventional treatment improves lung function, reduces exacerbation rates, and enhances COPD assessment test and TCM syndrome score in stable COPD patients. While no serious adverse events were reported, further studies with larger sample sizes are needed to confirm these findings.