Meta-analysis of the Chinese herbal bath therapy for knee osteoarthritis

2016 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-37
Author(s):  
X Yu ◽  
CED Lim ◽  
NCL Cheng
Keyword(s):  
Knee Osteoarthritis ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Chinese Herbal ◽  
Bath Therapy

scholarly journals Chinese Herbal Bath Therapy for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Chen ◽  
Hongsheng Zhan ◽  
Mei Chung ◽  
Xun Lin ◽  
Min Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Knee Osteoarthritis ◽  
Randomized Trials ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Mean Difference ◽  
Chinese Herbs ◽  
Knee Oa ◽  
Chinese Herbal ◽  
Effectiveness Rate ◽  
Bath Therapy

Objective. Chinese herbal bath therapy (CHBT) has traditionally been considered to have analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. We conducted the first meta-analysis evaluating its benefits for patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA).Methods. We searched three English and four Chinese databases through October, 2014. Randomized trials evaluating at least 2 weeks of CHBT for knee OA were selected. The effects of CHBT on clinical symptoms included both pain level (via the visual analog scale) and total effectiveness rate, which assessed pain, physical performance, and wellness. We performed random-effects meta-analyses using mean difference.Results. Fifteen studies totaling 1618 subjects met eligibility criteria. Bath prescription included, on average, 13 Chinese herbs with directions to steam and wash around the knee for 20–40 minutes once or twice daily. Mean treatment duration was 3 weeks. Results from meta-analysis showed superior pain improvement (mean difference = −0.59 points; 95% confidence intervals [CI], −0.83 to −0.36;p<0.00001) and higher total effectiveness rate (risk ratio = 1.21; 95% CI, 1.15 to 1.28;p<0.00001) when compared with standard western treatment. No serious adverse events were reported.Conclusion. Chinese herbal bath therapy may be a safe, effective, and simple alternative treatment modality for knee OA. Further rigorously designed, randomized trials are warranted.

scholarly journals An Apriori Algorithm-Based Association Rule Analysis to Identify Herb Combinations for Treating Uremic Pruritus Using Chinese Herbal Bath Therapy

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Ping-Hsun Lu ◽  
Jui-Lin Keng ◽  
Ko-Li Kuo ◽  
Yu-Fang Wang ◽  
Yu-Chih Tai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Association Rules ◽  
Association Rule ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Apriori Algorithm ◽  
Potential Core ◽  
Uremic Pruritus ◽  
Chinese Herbal ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Rule Analysis ◽  
Bath Therapy

Uremic pruritus (UP) is prevalent among patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), which causes severe itching and affects their quality of life. Additionally, patients experience fatigue and depression, and an increased risk of mortality has also been reported. A meta-analysis of 17 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) has indicated that Chinese herbal bath therapy (CHBT) had adjuvant benefits in improving UP in ESRD patients, and previous studies have reported that herb combinations were more useful than treatment with a single herb. Association rule analysis has been used to evaluate potential correlations between herb combinations, and Apriori algorithms are one of the most powerful machine-learning algorithms available for identifying associations within databases. Therefore, we used the Apriori algorithm to analyze association rules of potential core herb combinations for use in CHBT for UP treatment using data from a meta-analysis of 17 RCTs that used CHBT for UP treatment. Data on 43 CHBT herbs were extracted from 17 RCTs included for analysis and we found 19 association rules. The results indicated that the following herb combinations {Chuanxiong, Baijili} ≥ {Dahuang} and {Dahuang, Baijili} ≥ {Chuanxiong} were most strongly associated, implying that these herb combinations represent potential CHBT treatments for UP.

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