Traditional Chinese medicine tonifying kidney therapy (Bu shen) for stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is commonly used to combine with pharmacotherapy for stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in China and other Asian countries such as South Korea and Japan. The objective of this systematic review is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of tonifying kidney therapy (Bushen, TK) for stable COPD. METHODS: Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of TK for stable COPD were searched from 4 databases including Pubmed, the Cochrane library, CBM (China Biology Medicine disc, CBMdisc), CNKI (China National Knowledge Infrastructure) from inception to December 2017. Two reviewers independently screened the literature, extracted the data and assessed the risk of bias in included studies. RevMan 5.3 software was used for meta-analysis. The primary outcomes analyzed in this meta-analysis were effectiveness, TCM Syndrome Score, dyspnea (modified Medical Research Council questionnaire [mMRC]), COPD health status (COPD Assessment Test [CAT]), exercise capacity (6-min walk distance in meters [6mWD]), and respiratory-specific quality of life (St George's Respiratory Questionnaire [SGRQ]). Second outcomes analyzed for this meta-analysis were lung function (forced expiratory volume in 1 second [FEV1], FEV1%, forced vital capacity [FVC], FEV1/FVC), the frequency of acute exacerbation, T-lymphocyte subsets (CD4, CD8, CD4/CD8), and immunoglobulin (IgA, IgG, and IgM). The summary results will be pooled using the random-effects model or fixed-effects model according to the heterogeneity of the included studies. RESULT: This systematic review will provide an evidence of TK for stable COPD, and will submit to a peer-reviewed journal for publication. CONCLUSION: The conclusion of this systematic review will provide evidence to judge whether TK is an effective intervention for stable COPD patients. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO CRD 42018090328.