Extracts of Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F in the Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Systemic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials

Table 1

The characteristics of the included trials.

Author	Number of patients		Intervention and TwHF dose (g)		Duration (wks)	Outcomes
	Experimental	Control	Experimental	Control
Tao et al. 1989 [26]	27	31	TEs (0.06)	PBO	12	SJC, DMS, GS, RF, ESR, AE
Huang et al. 1989 [27]	18	16	TEs (0.03)	PBO	16	SJC, DMS, GS, RF, ESR, AE
Tan et al. 2000 [31]	40	35	TEs (0.06)	MTX + PA	12	TJC, SJC, DMS, RF, ESR, CRP, AE
Wang et al. 2006 [32]	45	45	TEs (0.06)	MTX	20	TJC, SJC, RF, ESR, CRP, AE
Yang and Zhang 2007 [33]	60	60	TEs (0.06)	MTX	4	TJC, SJC, DMS, GS, RF, ESR, CRP, AE
Yang 2011 [34]	74	72	TEs (1.8)	MTX	12	TJC, SJC, DMS, GS, AE
Liu et al. 2006 [35]	10	10	TEs (0.09)	MTX	12	TJC, SJC, DMS, RF, ESR, CRP
Goldbach-Mansky et al. 2009 [36]	37	25	TEs (0.18)	SSZ	4	RF, AE
Chen et al. 2011 [37]	34	34	TEs (0.06), MTX	MTX + LEF	12	ESR, CRP, AE
Li and Ji 2008 [38]	30	30	TEs (0.01–0.02), SSZ	MTX + SSZ	4	ESR, CRP

Note: TEs: TwHF extracts; MTX: methotrexate; LEF: leflunomide; SSZ: sulfasalazine; PA: penicillamine; TJC: tender joint count; SJC: swollen joint count; DMS: duration of morning stiffness; GS: grip strength; RF: rheumatoid factor; ESR: erythrocyte sedimentation rate; CRP: C-reactive protein; AE: adverse effect.