RESUMO
Objective To analyze the clinical effect of Jiawei Shegan Mahuang decoction for bronchial asthma and to compare its effect with that of routine western medicine therapy. Methods This was a randomized controlled clinical trial. Fifty-four patients with bronchial asthma (exterior cold and interior rheum pattern) were included and randomly divided into two groups, with 27 cases in each group. Patients in the control group were treated with routine western medicine therapy and the treatment group adopted Jiawei Shegan Mahuang decoction for two consecutive courses. The TCM syndrome integral, lung function, variation rate of peak expiratory flow (PEF), clinical efficacy and adverse reactions before and after treatment were observed and recorded based on an observer-blinding design. Results Compared with the control group, patients in the treatment group had significantly decreased total scores (and scores for each item) of TCM syndrome integral and variation rate of PEF (P0.05). Conclusion Jiawei Shegan Mahuang decoction has better clinical effect in improving the symptom and pulmonary function of patients with bronchial asthma (exterior cold and interior rheum pattern) compared with routine western medicine, and it can decrease the variation rate of PEF, indicating a promising clinical future, with its pharmacological mechanism and key components remaining to be further studied.