Liuwei Dihuang Decoction for primary Osteoporosis : A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

Background: Primary osteoporosis (POP) is one kind of global disease, as a serious threat to human health. Liuwei Dihuang Decoction (LWDHD) has been recommended to treat osteoporosis alone or combined with medicine in China; however, its efficacy is unclear. The object of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of LWDHD in the management of POP. Methods: We will search The Cochrane Library, Medline, PubMed, Elsevier, Springer, Web of Science, Ovid, WHO ICTRP, CNKI, CBM, VIP, and WanFang Database from their inception to February 2019. All randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of LWDHD for the treatment of POP will be included. The language is limited to Chinese and English. The fracture incidence will be accepted as the primary outcomes. Data synthesis, subgroup analysis, sensitivity analysis will be performed by using RevMan V.5.3.5 software. Results: A high-quality synthesis of current evidence for the treatment of POP with LWDHD will be provided from efficacy and safety. Conclusion: This systematic review will generate evidence for judging whether LWDHD is an effective and safe intervention for POP or not. PROSPERO registration number: PROSPERO CRD 4201926066. Abbreviations: CAM = complementary and alternative medicine, CI = confidence interval, CIs = confidence intervals, CMB = Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, CNKI = China National Knowledge Infrastructure, EMBASE = Excerpt Medica Database, LWDHD = Liuwei Dihuang Decoction, OP = osteoporosis, OR = odds ratio, POP = primary osteoporosis, PRISMAP = Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic review and Meta-Analysis Protocols, RCTs = randomized controlled trials, RR = rate ratio, RR = relative risk, SMD = standard mean difference, TCM = Traditional Chinese Medicine, VIP = Chinese Science and Technology Periodical Database, WHO ICTRP = World Health Organization International Clinical Trial Registration Platform, WMD = weighted mean difference, WOS = Web of Science.