Efficacy of Chinese Herbal Medicine for Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trials

Table 3

Global symptom improvement, CHM versus placebo.

Therapy	Study	Response rate, % (response/)		Therapeutic gain, %	NNT	RR (95% CI)
		CHM	Placebo
Individualized	Bensoussan et al. 1998 [27]	47.4 (18/38)	29.4 (5/17)	18.0	5.6	1.61 (0.72, 3.62)
SLIS		65.2 (152/233)	46.9 (97/207)	18.3	5.5	1.42 (1.08, 1.86)
	Bensoussan et al. 1998 [27]	67.4 (29/43)	33.3 (6/18)	34.1	2.9	2.02 (1.02, 4.02)
	Leung et al. 2006 [18]	35.0 (21/60)	44.1 (26/59)	−9.1	—	0.79 (0.51, 1.24)
	Li et al. 2010 [33]	83.3 (25/30)	60.0 (18/30)	23.3	4.3	1.39 (1.00, 1.94)
	Li et al. 2014 [40]	72.5 (58/80)	45.0 (36/80)	27.5	3.6	1.61 (1.22, 2.13)
	Luo 2002 [28]	95.0 (19/20)	55.0 (11/20)	40.0	2.5	1.73 (1.15, 2.60)
WKIS		90.0 (144/160)	43.8 (70/160)	46.2	2.2	2.06 (1.71, 2.47)
	Li 2011 [36]	92.5 (37/40)	42.5 (17/40)	50.0	2	2.18 (1.50, 3.15)
	Su et al. 2013 [37]	89.2 (107/120)	44.2 (53/120)	45.0	2.2	2.02 (1.64, 2.49)
Total		72.9 (314/431)	44.8 (172/384)	28.1	3.6	1.62 (1.31, 2.49)

CHM, Chinese herbal medicine; NNT, number needed to treat; RR, relative risk; SLIS, soothing the liver and invigorating the spleen; WKIS, warming the kidney and invigorating the spleen; I, individualized group; S, standard group.