Systematic Review of Clinical Trials Assessing the Effectiveness of Ivy Leaf (Hedera Helix) for Acute Upper Respiratory Tract Infections

Table 1

Characteristics of included studies.

Reference	Country	Patients (I/C)*	Inclusion criteria	C/A**	Gender (m/f in %)	Age range (years)	Treatment				Treatment (days)
							Intervention group	daily dose	Control group	daily dose
Randomized controlled trials (RCTs)
Kemmerich et al. 2006	Germany	182/178	Acute bronchitis	A	46.7/53.3	18–87 y	Ivy + Thyme, “Bronchipret” syrup; Ivy: 1.5 g LE/100 g (1:1, E70%); Thyme: 15 g LE/100 g (1:2–2.5)	16.2 ml	Placebo	n.a.	10
Unkauf and Friedrich 2000	Germany	25/27	Acute bronchitis	C	51.9/48.1	<12 y	Ivy, “Valverde” syrup 0.33–0.5 g DE/100 ml (3–6:1, E60%)	10–20 ml	Ivy, “Prospan” syrup 0.7 g DE/100 ml (5–7.5:1, E30%)	10–20 ml	10
Controlled trials (CCTs)
Bolbot et al. 2004	Ukraine	25/25	Acute bronchitis	C	64.0/36.0	2–10 y	Ivy, “Prospan” syrup (5–7.5:1)	15–30 ml	Acetylcysteine	300–1200 mg	7–10
Observational studies (OSs)
Büechi and Kähler 2003	Switzerland	56	Acute bronchitis, common cold	C/A	32.1/67.9	7–93 y	Ivy, pastilles 26 mg DE/pastille (4–8:1, E30%)	2–6 pastilles, 52–156 mg DE			7
Büechi et al. 2005	Switzerland	62	Acute and chronic bronchitis, common cold	A	40.3/59.7	16–89 y	Ivy + Thyme, syrup, Ivy: 1.0 g DE/100 g (4–8:1, E30%); Thyme: 25.4 g DE/100 g (1:3.5–4)	5–15 ml (6.7–20.1g)			3–23
Fazio et al. 2009	Latin America***	9657	Acute and chronic bronchitis, cough	C/A	NR	0–98 y	Ivy, syrup (5–7.5:1, E30%)	7.5–22.5 ml			7
Hecker 1999	Germany	248	Bronchitis	C/A	44.4/55.6	0–70 y	Ivy, “Prospan” syrup in 48.4% of patients, “Prospan” effervescent tablets in 51.6% of patients	NR	n.a.		~8 (mean)
Leskow 1985	Germany	84	Acute and chronic bronchitis, chesty cough, pertussis	C/A	46.4/53.6	1–82 y	Ivy, “Prospan” drops 2 g DE/100 ml	30–100 drops			12.3 (mean)
Marzian 2007	Germany	1044	Acute bronchitis	C	50.5/49.5	0–17 y	Ivy + Thyme, “Bronchipret” syrup; Ivy: 1.5 g LE/100 g (1:1, E70%); Thyme: 15 g LE/100 g (1:2–2.5)	9.6–16.2 ml			10
Santoro Júnior 2005	Brasil	5850	Bronchitis	C/A	47.9/52.1	NR	Ivy, “Abrilar” syrup	7.5–22.5 ml			7

n.a. = not applicable, NR = not reported, DE = dry extract, LE = liquid extract, E% = ethanol %, Values are reported as stated in the respective publications. If information is missing (e.g., composition of herbal preparation), the paper does not give any more details. Brand names are marked by quotation marks. *Number of participants included in analysis (I/C = number in Intervention/Control group) **C/A = Children/Adults, ***11 countries in Latin America.