Guizhi Gancao Longgu Muli decoction for insomnia: A protocol for a systematic review

BACKGROUND: Insomnia is a prevalent and bothersome disorder of sleep initiation and maintenance. Although efficacious treatments for insomnia have been available for decades, they all have their own limitations. Guizhi Gancao Longgu Muli Decoction (GGLMD), a popular complementary and alternative therapy, has been widely applied to treat insomnia in some Asian countries for centuries. Yet no systematic reviews have comprehensively assessed the efficacy and safety of GGLMD as a treatment for insomnia. METHODS: A comprehensive search up to November, 2019 will be conducted in the following electronic databases: the Cochrane Library, Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, the Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), the Chinese Biomedical Literature Database (CBM), the Chinese Scientific Journal Database (VIP), and the Wanfang Database. The primary outcomes will be sleep quality including Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and polysomnography (PSG). Stata 15 will be used for data analysis as well. RESULTS: This study will provide the current evidence of insomnia treated with GGLMD from the several points including PSQI and PSG. CONCLUSION: The consequence of this summary will furnish proof to evaluate if GGLMD is effective in the treatment of insomnia. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Without personal information involved, ethical approval and informed consent form is no need. The review will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal prospectively to spread our findings. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: PROSPERO CRD42018118336.