Removing phlegm and dispelling stasis method combined with Western medicine for treatment of cerebrovascular stenosis / 中国中西医结合杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the effect of removing phlegm and dispelling stasis method (RPDSM) combined with Western medicine for treatment of cerebrovascular stenosis.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Seventy enrolled patients were randomly assigned to 3 groups the Western medicine (WM) group, the integrative medicine (IM) group, and the traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) group. The 21 patients in the WM group were treated with Western medicine as aspirin, Clopidogrel, statins, etc.; the 23 patients in the TCM group were treated with Chinese drugs using the patent preparation Dahuang Zhechong Pill and Tianma Duzhong Capsule as the basic drugs, and supplemented by self-formulated decoctions, selected according to their syndrome types (Tanshi Recipe for dampness-phlegm syndrome, Tanhuo Recipe for fire-phlegm syndrome, Qixu Recipe for qi-deficiency syndrome, and Yang-kang Recipe for yang-excess syndrome); and the 26 patients in the IM group were treated by both TCM and WM with the same drugs and doses mentioned above. The course of treatment was 3 months, and all patients received at least 2 courses in succession. Changes in clinical symptoms and TCM syndrome, levels of C-reactive protein (CRP), platelet aggregation rate (PAR) and fibrinogen (Fib), as well as pictures of medical imaging were observed to evaluate cerebrovascular stenosis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>After 6-month treatment, the blood levels of CRP, PAR and Fib were lowered and the number of moderate and severe stenosed vessel lessened in all the three groups (all P < 0.05). The respective total effective rate in the WM, TCM and IM group was 42.9% (9/21 cases), 39.1% (9/23 cases) and 61.5% (16/26 cases), no significant difference was shown among them.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The integrative Chinese traditional and Western medical treatment for cerebrovascular stenosis shows an increasing trend in improving clinical efficacy and laboratory indexes, combared with pure Western or Chinese medical treatment.</p>