Clinical efficacy of Zhiyang Xiaozhen granules combined with second-generation antihistamine in the treatment of chronic urticaria.

OBJECTIVES:Chronic urticaria presents a chronic process of recurrent attacks, and its first-line treatment is second-generation antihistamine with limited treatment options. The efficacy of antihistamine varies among individuals and cannot meet the needs of all patients. This study aims to explore the clinical efficacy and safety of Zhiyang Xiaozhen granules combined with antihistamine in the treatment of chronic urticaria patients. METHODS:We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of patients with chronic urticaria who visited the Xiangya Hospital of Central South University from April 2020 to March 2021. The patients who received conventional second-generation antihistamine treatment were selected as a control group, while the patients who received combined treatment with Zhiyang Xiaozhen granules on the basis of conventional second-generation antihistamine treatment were selected as an observation group. The differences in the Weekly Urticaria Activity Score (UAS7) and Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) between the 2 groups before and 4 weeks after treatment were compared. The Symptom Score Reduce Index (SSRI) was used to evaluate and compare the efficacy of the 2 treatment regimens. RESULTS:After 4 weeks of treatment, the UAS7 levels in both groups were significantly reduced (P=0.001 and P<0.001, respectively). The effective rates of the control group and the observation group were 61.11% and 59.38%, respectively when converting UAS7 to SSRI for efficacy evaluation, and there was no statistically significant difference in efficacy between the 2 groups (P>0.05); however, when converting DLQI to SSRI for efficacy evaluation, the effective rates of the control group and the observation group were 33.33% and 46.88%, respectively, and the difference in efficacy between the 2 groups was statistically significant (P<0.001). There were 3 patients with adverse drug reactions related to drowsiness in both groups. CONCLUSIONS:The combination of Zhiyang Xiaozhen granules and second-generation antihistamine can effectively improve disease activity in patients with chronic urticaria, and the improvement in quality of life is better than that with the second-generation antihistamine alone.