Assessment of the renal function and fibrosis indexes of conventional western medicine with Chinese medicine for dredging collaterals on treating renal fibrosis: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

To investigate the renal function and fibrosis indexes of conventional western medicine with Chinese medicine for dredging collaterals in the treatment of renal fibrosis (RF). We searched articles from databases (PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane Library, CNKI, and Wanfang data) and references of included studies. The quality of literature was evaluated and data were extracted in regard to the inclusion and exclusion criteria. RevMan5.3 software was applied for all statistical analyses. Eleven eligible RCTs with a total of 898 patients were included in this meta-analysis. Compared with conventional western medicine alone, conventional western medicine with Chinese medicine for dredging collaterals in the treatment of RF has lower BUN levels and SCr levels (P < 0.05). As for fibrosis indexes, conventional western medicine with Chinese medicine for dredging collaterals has lower HA, laminin (LN), IV-Col, and PC-III levels (P < 0.05). Conventional western medicine with Chinese medicine for dredging collaterals with lower BUN, Scr, HA, LN, PC-III, and IV-Col levels, has an advantage in the treatment of RF. These lower serum levels may not be associated with the presence of RF. Ideally, kidney biopsies should be performed to confirm that these markers reduce RF. This is a major limitation of this study.