Objective To investigate the quality of the randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) integrated with western medicine for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Method All the randomized controlled trials of traditional Chinese medicine integrated with western medicine for SARS worldwide were gained by electronic searching and hand searching. The quality of the RCTs was analyzed by the quality grade evaluation used in Cochrane handbook.The sample size, the baseline data, the results indexes were also analyzed. Results Seven RCTs included 501 SARS cases were identified. The quality grade of one RCT is B, the other six RCTs were graded C. None pre-specified sample size. One RCT tested the differences of the baseline data by statistic method. One RCT reported quality of life as result index. None reported the adverse events.Conclusions Current RCTs of TCM integrated with western medicine can’t provide b evidence for clinical practice because of the poor quality.
Clinical research reports are the main form of clinical evidence. Based on the requirements of clinical research reports and the characteristics of clinical research on traditional Chinese medicine, it is an important basic systematic project to construct a standardized system of clinical curative effects study report on Chinese medicine. This article elaborates existing problems, focus of attention and construction process in order to help promote the improvement of clinical curative effects research report on Chinese medicine, provide more high-quality evidences for clinical decision-making and promote the development of Chinese medicine.