ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To assess the effect and adverse reaction of total glucosides of paeony capsule (TGPC) in combining with citirizine for the treatment of chronic urticaria.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 120 patients were assigned to two groups by lottery, 65 in the treated group and 55 in the control group. They all were orally treated with citirizine tablet 10 mg per day, but to the treated group, additional 0.2 g TGPC was given three times per day, the therapeutic course for both groups was 4 weeks. The effectiveness of treatment was observed, and the changes of total symptom score, serum levels of interleukin-4 (IL-4), and immunoglobulin E (IgE) were measured before and after treatment. Moreover, a follow-up was carried out one month after ending the treatment.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The dropped cases were two in the treated group and seven in the control group; so, the study was accomplished on 63 patients in the treated group and 48 patients in the control group. The total effective rate was assessed at 73.02% (46/63) in the treated group, which was significantly higher than 47.92% (23/48) in the control group (P<0.01). After treatment, the total symptom score decreased in both groups, but the decrement in the treated group was more significant (P<0.05). Serum levels of IL-4 and IgE in the treated group lowered significantly, while the changes in the control group were insignificant, so statistical significant differences were shown between groups (P<0.01). A follow-up study showed that the relapse rate in the treated group was 30.00% (6/20), while that in the control group was 90.00% (9/10), and the former was lower than the latter (P<0.01). Adverse reactions, revealed as drowsiness, dizziness, and weakness, were seen in eight cases and seven cases in the two groups, respectively. Besides, mild diarrhea occurred in two cases of the treated group.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>The treatment of TGPC combining citirizine shows definite curative effect in treating chronic urticaria, with low relapse rate and without evident adverse reaction. Its therapeutic effect might be realized by means of regulating patients' immune function. Besides, the medication should be continued for a rather long period to achieve the full effect.</p>