The therapeutic effect of silymarin in the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty disease: A meta-analysis (PRISMA) of randomized control trials

Abstract

Background: Silymarin (SIL) is an active extraction of the silybum marianum, milk thistle, which is an ancient medicinal plant for treatment of various liver diseases for centuries. This study is to assess the therapeutic effect of SIL in the treatment of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease through meta-analysis. Methods: Published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included from electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane library, Web of Science, and so forth). Cochrane handbook was applied to evaluate the methodological quality. All statistical analyses were directed by Revman 5.3 software, and statistical significance was defined as P