Efficacy of Yupingfeng granule combined with cetirizine in the treatment of allergic rhinitis and its effects on serum inflammatory factor level / 中国基层医药

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the efficacy of Yupingfeng granule combined with cetirizine in the treatment of allergic rhinitis and its effects on serum inflammatory factor level. Methods:A total of 162 patients with allergic rhinitis admitted to Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine from January 2021 to March 2022 were included in this prospective controlled study. They were randomly divided into a control group and an observation group ( n = 81/group). The control group was treated with cetirizine and the observation group was treated with Yupingfeng granule combined with cetirizine. All patients were treated for 4 weeks. Clinical efficacy was compared between the two groups after 4 weeks of treatment. Main symptom score, nasal function indexes (total nasal airway resistance, nasal minimal cross-sectional area, and 0-5 cm nasal cavity volume), levels of inflammatory factors (interleukin-4, interleukin-6, and interleukin-10), and Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire scores were compared between the two groups before and after 4 weeks of treatment. Results:Total response rate in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group [92.59% (75/81) vs. 79.01% (64/81), χ2 = 6.13, P < 0.05]. After 4 weeks of treatment, the scores of nasal congestion, nasal itching, and sneezing in the observation group were (0.63 ± 0.20) points, (0.70 ± 0.21) points, and (0.54 ± 0.17) points, which were significantly lower than (1.07 ± 0.23) points, (1.08 ± 0.24) points, and (0.89 ± 0.22) points in the control group ( t = 12.99, 10.72, 11.33, all P < 0.05). After 4 weeks of treatment, total nasal airway resistance in the observation group was significantly lower than that in the control group [(0.17 ± 0.05) kPa·s -1·L -1vs. (0.26 ± 0.06) kPa·s -1·L -1, t = 10.37, P < 0.05]. Nasal minimal cross-sectional area and 0-5 cm nasal cavity volume in the observation group were (0.94 ± 0.17) cm 2 and (9.74 ± 0.89) cm 3, respectively, which were significantly higher than (0.76 ± 0.10) cm 2 and (8.43 ± 0.78) cm 3 in the control group ( t = 8.21, 9.96, both P < 0.05). After 4 weeks of treatment, serum levels of interleukin-4 and interleukin-6 in the observation group were (67.79 ± 9.94) ng/L and (6.74 ± 1.42) ng/L, respectively, which were significantly lower than (104.31 ± 14.45) ng/L and (10.29 ± 2.56) ng/L in the control group ( t = 18.74, 10.91, both P < 0.05). Serum level of interleukin-10 in the observation group was significantly higher than that in the control group [(17.97 ± 2.54) ng/L vs. (12.48 ± 2.46) ng/L, t = 13.97, P < 0.05]. After 4 weeks of treatment, Rhinoconjunctivitis Quality of Life Questionnaire score in the observation group was significantly lower than that in the control group [(27.43 ± 8.82) points vs. (38.95 ± 7.76) points, t = 8.82, P < 0.05). Conclusion:Yupingfeng granule combined with cetirizine is highly effective on allergic rhinitis. The combined therapy can reduce clinical symptoms and inflammatory reactions, improve nasal function, and thereby improve quality of life.