Clearing heat and resolving phlegm for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with the syndrome of phlegm-heat obstruction of the lung

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of clearing heat and resolving phlegm for acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with the syndrome of phlegm-heat obstruction of the lung. METHODS: This was a real-world retrospective cohort study of inpatients at our institution from 1 January 2015 to 31 December 2017. The patients were divided into two groups according to whether they received oral traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) for clearing heat and resolving phlegm or routine treatment (controls). Efficacy and safety indicators were analyzed. Propensity score matching was used to control for confounding factors. RESULTS: Among 488 patients, 164 (82 pairs) were successfully matched. The changes in neutrophils (%) and C-reactive protein levels were more significant in the TCM group than in the control group. The duration of fever was significantly shorter in the TCM group than in the control group. CONCLUSIONS: The therapy of clearing heat and resolving phlegm might effectively control the inflammatory reaction of acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in patients with the syndrome of phlegm-heat obstruction of the lung, especially for those with fever. Nevertheless, large-scale and prospective studies are required to provide a higher quality of evidence.