Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Efficacy and Safety of Binghuang Fule Ointment in Treatment of Eczema

To expeditiously assess the efficacy and safety of Binghuang Fule Ointment in the treatment of eczema, we screened out the papers with randomized controlled trials(RCTs) for studying the efficacy of Binghuang Fule Ointment in the treatment of eczema from CNKI, VIP, Wanfang, SinoMed, PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMbase and then performed Meta-analysis of the included studies via RevMan 5.4. A total of 19 studies were included, involving 1 919 cases(973 cases in the experimental group and 946 cases in the control group). Meta-analysis results showed that Binghuang Fule Ointment combined with conventional western medicine had better efficacy score index(clinical effectiveness ≥60%)(RR=1.32, 95%CI[1.13, 1.55], P=0.000 4) and lower recurrence rate(RR=0.37, 95%CI[0.20, 0.65], P=0.000 7) than conventional western medicine alone. The adverse reactions(RR=1.05, 95%CI[0.52, 2.15], P=0.88) did not show significant difference between the two groups. The application of Binghuang Fule Ointment alone had better efficacy score index(clinical effectiveness≥60%)(RR=1.20, 95%CI[1.09, 1.33], P=0.000 3) than conventional western medicine alone and the adverse reactions(RR=0.92, 95%CI[0.45, 1.89], P=0.82) insignificantly different from conventional western medicine alone. Binghuang Fule Ointment alone or combined with conventional western medicine demonstrated better effective in remission of symptoms and signs(clinical effectiveness)(RR=1.41, 95%CI[1.07, 1.85], P=0.01) than conventional western medicine alone. Compared with the single application of western medicine, Binghuang Fule Ointment alone or combined with conventional western medicine has better curative effect, low recurrence rate, and equivalent safety in the treatment of eczema. Nevertheless, owing to the low quality of the included papers, randomized controlled trials with large sample size, multiple centers, high methodological quality are needed to further verify the efficacy and safety of Binghuang Fule Ointment in the treatment of eczema.