Compound Danshen dripping pills for stable angina: Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

The aim of this study was to perform a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) comparing the compound Danshen dripping pill (DSP) with isosorbide dinitrate (ID) in treatment of stable angina. A search of MEDLINE and CNKI (China national knowledge infrastructure) databases was performed to investigate studies published from 1966 to 2010. Trials comparing the use of DSP versus ID in treating stable angina were assessed. Of the 245 studies screened, 15 RCTs including 1536 patients (DSP therapy 847; ID therapy 689) were analyzed. There was evidence that DSP treatment improved symptoms more than ID treatment (93.4% vs. 73.8%, odds ratios (OR) 4.92 points, 95% confidence intervals (CI) 3.36 similar to 7.20). DSP as compared to ID treatment also resulted in superior electrocardiograms (ECG) improvements (69.7% vs. 46.3%, OR 2.75 points, 95% CI 2.14 similar to 3.55). In addition, the results showed that DSP plus routine therapy compared with ID plus routine therapy increased the improvement in symptoms (93.6% vs. 79.2%, OR 4.04 points, 95% CI 2.16 similar to 7.56) and ECG results (70.8% vs. 51.3%, OR 2.72 points, 95% CI 1.79 similar to 4.12). The study suggested that DSP is an effective therapy option with which to treat stable angina.