Objective: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Wenxin Keli (WXKL) alone or combined with Western medicine in treating ventricular premature complexes (VPCs) with heart failure (HF).
Methods: We searched five databases to identify relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published before May 2016. Two review authors independently searched and screened the literature, extracted the data as well as assessed the methodological quality of the included studies by using criteria from the Cochrane Handbook, and analyzed via using Review Manager 5.3 software.
Results: Eight studies of WXKL were included. The results of the Meta-analysis showed that WXKL was more significant on the frequency of VPCs (MD=-427.08, 95% CI: -526.73∼-327.43, P<0.01), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (MD=-4.12, 95% CI: 2.97∼5.27, P<0.01), the total effect of VPCs (RR=0.48, 95% CI: 0.34∼0.69, P<0.01) and 6-min walking test (MD=28.05, 95% CI: 19.56∼36.54, P<0.01). The treatment group presented a significant reduction at left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVED) (MD=-3.94, 95% CI: -6.57∼-1.31, P<0.01) when treatment time was 12 weeks, however, there was no statistical difference at 8 weeks. In addition, the included trials generally showed low methodological quality.
Conclusions: Wenxin Keli may be effective and safe for treating VPCs and HF. However, further RCTs of larger scale, multi-center/country, longer follow-up periods, and higher quality are still required to verify the efficacy of Wenxin Keli in ventricular premature beat with heart failure.
Keywords: Heart failure; Meta-analysis; Ventricular premature complexes; Wenxin Keli.
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