Chinese herbal medicine formula for acute asthma: A multi-center, randomized, double-blind, proof-of-concept trial.

BACKGROUND: Despite advances in asthma management, exacerbations constitute a significant health economic burden. OBJECTIVE: To observe the efficacy and safety of Chinese herbal medicine formula entitled PingchuanYiqi (PCYQ) granule, on acute asthma and to explore its possible mechanism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This proof-of-concept study consisted of a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial in patients with acute asthma (n = 300). Participants with acute mild-to-moderate asthma recruited from seven centers in China were randomly assigned to receive PCYQ or placebo. The primary outcomes were PEF (L/min) and total asthma symptom scores. Furthermore, a panel of cytokines including serum IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IL-1ß, IL-17A, IFN-α, IFN-ß, IFN-γ, CRP, CCL-5, IP-10, and PGD2 levels was detected using ELISA. RESULTS: The PCYQ (n = 139) significantly improved the morning PEF on day 4 (349.73 ±â€¯93.92 vs. 313.56 ±â€¯92.91 L/min, P = 0.004) and day 7 (360.42 ±â€¯94.39 vs. 329.52 ±â€¯95.97 L/min, P = 0.023), and the evening PEF on day 4 (352.65 ±â€¯95.47 vs. 320.58 ±â€¯95.30 L/min, P = 0.012) and day 7 (360.42 ±â€¯94.39 vs. 336.86 ±â€¯95.59 L/min, P = 0.029) in comparison with the placebo (n = 143). The PCYQ also improved the clinical symptoms scores and reduced the puffs of short-acting ß2-agonist (all P < 0.05). Furthermore, the PCYQ statistically reduced IL-5, IL-8, IL-1ß and PGD2 in serum. CONCLUSION: The PCYQ as the Chinese herbal medicine formula significantly improves lung function and symptoms of acute asthma, and reduces SABA dosage possibly via decrease of inflammatory biomarkers such as IL-5, IL-8, IL-1ß and PGD2. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN61674768 (http://www.isrctn.com/).

Multi-central clinical research into treating 80 cases of chronic thrombocytopenia with qi-supplementing and yin-nourishing therapy and western medicine.

OBJECTIVE: To probe the effects of qi-supplementing and yin-nourishing therapy (blood-increasing decoction and blood generating powder) on chronic thrombocytopenia. METHODS: Two hundred patients with chronic thrombocytopenia were randomly divided into control (n = 100) and test groups (n = 100) with Amino-polypeptide as a basic treatment for both. Test group patients consumed a blood-increasing decoction and blood-generating powder for 1-3 months. Improvements in platelet counts and TCM syndrome were observed. RESULTS: One hundred and sixty-four (80 in the test group and 84 in the control group) of 189 total participants were treated for 3 months. The total effective rate in improving TCM syndrome was 95.00% in the test group and 79.76% in the control group (P < 0.05). There was significant difference (P < 0.05) in the accumulated score of TCM syndrome between the two groups treated at different time points. The total effective rate of platelet counts was 86.25% in the test group and 59.52% in the control group (P < 0.05). There was a significant difference in platelet counts before and after treatment in the two groups (P < 0.05). There was no significant differences in platelet count between the two groups treated for 1-2 months; however, a significant difference was found between the two groups after treatment for 3 months (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: After a 3-month treatment of chronic thrombocytopenia patients with qi-supplementing and yin-nourishing therapy, TCM syndrome was improved and platelet counts increased with no obvious side effects, and the quality of life of the participants was enhanced with noticeable long-term curative effects.