Category: Parkinson’s Disease: Clinical Trials
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of Chinese proprietary medicine (CPM) in improving outcomes of Parkinson’s disease (PD).
Background: CPM is a finished Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) product in the form of granules, capsules, or tablets, which can be conveniently consumed. Early clinical evidence reported a possible effect of CPM as an adjunct treatment for controlling symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Conducting a systematic review and meta-analysis of CPM trial outcomes is necessary.
Method: Double-blind, add-on, randomized placebo-controlled trials of CPM were searched in 7 databases including Cochrane, Medline and Embase until 14th Feb 2023, and were screened by 2 reviewers. Revman 5.4 and Risk of Bias 2 Tool were used to perform the meta-analysis (using random-effect models) and assess methodological quality respectively. This review was registered in the PROSPERO database (CRD42021227829).
Results: Database search yielded 5,002 results, of which 582 were included in the full-text screening. 25 eligible studies with 3,166 patients in total were analyzed. Significant improvements in treatment group were displayed in Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale Part II (MD: -3.01, 95% CI: -3.96 to -2.05, P), III (MD: -3.84, 95% CI: -5.24 to -2.44) and the total score (MD: -5.36, 95% CI: -6.55 to -4.17), Parkinson Disease Questionnaire (MD: -9.89, 95% CI: -11.23 to -8.55), Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (MD: -2.04, 95% CI: -3.90 to -0.19) and Parkinson’s Disease Sleep Scale (MD: 16.84, 95% CI: 13.78 to 19.91) compared to placebo. Paeoniae Radix Alba (Baishao), Polygoni Multiflori Radix (Heshouwu), and Cistanches Herba (Roucongrong) were the top 3 most frequently used CHM. There were in general some concerns or high risk of bias in the methodology of the included studies, especially in reporting missing data and the measurement of outcomes.
Conclusion: There is yet to be strong clinical evidence supporting the effect of CPM in improving outcomes of PD, warranting future rigorous clinical studies.
To cite this abstract in AMA style:
S. Yuen, KK. Chua, SC. Chen, CP. Ho, C. Chan, M. Li. Chinese proprietary medicine as adjunct treatment for Parkinson’s disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2023; 38 (suppl 1). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/chinese-proprietary-medicine-as-adjunct-treatment-for-parkinsons-disease-a-systematic-review-and-meta-analysis/. Accessed June 15, 2025.« Back to 2023 International Congress
MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/chinese-proprietary-medicine-as-adjunct-treatment-for-parkinsons-disease-a-systematic-review-and-meta-analysis/