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Danggui-Shaoyao-San for dementia: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis
Kim Y, Cho SH.. Medicine, 2020-01-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background Although memory loss and other symptoms of dementia pose tremendous burdens on patients and societies, there is currently no cure for dementia. Methods We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of the anti-dementia effects of Danggui-Shaoyao-San (DSS), which is derived from natural resources. We searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) from inception to June 2019. We searched PubMed, Embase, Korean databases (Research Information Service System and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System), Chinese databases (China Knowledge Resource Integrated Database and Wanfang Database), and Japanese databases (CiNii and J-STAGE). Studies were included if they were a RCT, investigated the efficacy of DSS or its modified form, and included participants with dementia. Use of DSS with other treatment (eg, acupuncture, anti-dementia drugs, etc) was included. Items of each trial were evaluated by 2 independent reviewers. Data were pooled by using random-effect models. Results A total of 482 studies were identified, and 5 eligible studies for Alzheimer disease (AD) and 4 studies for vascular dementia (VD) were included in the final analysis, representing a total of 567 participants. As for AD, pooled results of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) (mean differences [MD] 4.60; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.29, 4.91) and activities of daily living (MD 11.40; 95% CI 10.94, 11.86) favored DSS. DSS had synergistic effect with acupuncture over acupuncture alone in MMSE (MD 1.69; 95% CI 1.05, 2.34), Hasegawa Dementia Scale (MD.62; 95% CI -0.20, 1.44), and activities of daily living (MD 2.38; 95% CI 1.92, 2.85). In VD, pooled results showed a significant difference in the score of dementia scales such as MMSE and Hasegawa Dementia Scale compared with nootropic drugs. DSS significantly reduced symptoms (odds ratio 5.02, 95%, CI 2.76-9.11) in patients with VD. The respective size of each RCTs was small and some included studies were of low quality due to their limited description on methodological issues. Conclusion These estimates suggest that DSS provides clinically important reductions in symptoms of AD and VD and can be a promising anti-dementia drug candidate.
Key findings
- Results A total of 482 studies were identified, and 5 eligible studies for Alzheimer disease (AD) and 4 studies for vascular dementia (VD) were included in the final analysis, representing a total of 567 participants.
- As for AD, pooled results of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) (mean differences [MD] 4.60; 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.29, 4.91) and activities of daily living (MD 11.40; 95% CI 10.94, 11.86) favored DSS.
- In VD, pooled results showed a significant difference in the score of dementia scales such as MMSE and Hasegawa Dementia Scale compared with nootropic drugs.
- DSS significantly reduced symptoms (odds ratio 5.02, 95%, CI 2.76-9.11) in patients with VD.
- Conclusion These estimates suggest that DSS provides clinically important reductions in symptoms of AD and VD and can be a promising anti-dementia drug candidate.
Why it matters
This review of randomized trials found that Danggui-Shaoyao-San improved scores on cognitive and daily living measures in people with Alzheimer disease and vascular dementia. It is a systematic review of a natural treatment, not a cure or prevention.
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Study details
- Study designsystematic review
- Participants567
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 60/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a systematic review of all the studies on the question. Scored zero for effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Medicine) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Medicine: journal h-index 285 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 12 / 12 | A systematic review of all the studies on the question |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2020 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 567 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | A review of other studies — randomisation is not credited here |
| Times cited | 3 / 7 | Cited 28 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 3.5 citations a year over 8 year(s) since 2020 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 1 / 6 | Cited by 1 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 13 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Seung‐Hun Cho: h-index 24 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | Kyung Hee University: institution h-index 468 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 31977846) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 60 / 100 | — |
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Read the original
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Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Kim, Y., & Cho, S. H. (2020). Danggui-Shaoyao-San for dementia: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis. Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1097/md.0000000000018507
Vancouver
Kim Y, Cho SH. Danggui-Shaoyao-San for dementia: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis. Medicine. 2020. doi:10.1097/md.0000000000018507. PMID: 31977846.
BibTeX
@article{kim2020-31977846,
author = {Kim, Y. and Cho, S. H.},
title = {{Danggui-Shaoyao-San for dementia: A PRISMA-compliant systematic review and meta-analysis}},
journal = {Medicine},
year = {2020},
doi = {10.1097/md.0000000000018507},
pmid = {31977846},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1097/md.0000000000018507}
}
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