Herbal medicine treatment for patients with chronic subdural hematoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract Background and purpose In Asian countries, herbal medicines have been used to treat Chronic subdural hematoma (CSDH) as an adjunctive therapy. This review aims to evaluate the efficacy and safety of herbal medicine on treating CSDH and preventing recurrent CSDH. Methods A literature search was conducted on PubMed, CENTRAL, Scopus, CiNii, KTKP, NDSL, OASIS, and CNKI for randomized controlled trials that evaluated the effects of herbal medicines on CSDH. Results Seven studies (n = 646) were included. The overall methodological quality of these studies was low. In the herbal group, the meta-analysis indicated statistically significant improvements in the total effective rate and recurrence rate as compared with those in the non-herbal group. Herbal treatments were found to be relatively safe. Conclusion Herbal medicines might be efficacious in the management of CSDH and prevent its recurrence. Further rigorous studies will have to be conducted in order to make more definite conclusions.