Chinese herbal medicine for insomnia: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials

Wing-Fai Yeung, Ka-Fai Chung, Maggie Man-Ki Poon, Fiona Yan-Yee Ho, Shi-Ping Zhang, Zhang-Jin Zhang, Eric Tat-Chi Zie, Vivian Taam Wong · Sleep Medicine Reviews · 2012 December

DOI 10.1016/j.smrv.2011.12.005

Objective

A systematic review including Chinese and English literature of randomized controlled trials was conducted to examine the efficacy, safety, and composition of CHM for insomnia.

Conclusions

Due to the poor methodological quality of the studies and the small number of trials included in meta-analyses, the current evidence is insufficient to support the efficacy of CHM for insomnia. The frequency of adverse events associated with CHM was similar to that of placebo, but lower than with Western medication.

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Insights

Chinese herbal medicine for insomnia had similar efficacy to Western medication and placebos, with fewer adverse events.

The methodology involved conducting a systematic review of both Chinese and English literature related to randomized controlled trials. This focused on exploring the efficacy, safety, and composition of Chinese Herbal Medicine (CHM) treatment for insomnia. The selection process was stringent, requiring papers to meet a high quality standard, as measured using the Jadad score. The compositional analysis identified the most commonly used CHM formula and single herb in treating insomnia. The result of the analysis indicated that the effects of Chinese Herbal Medicine on treating insomnia were comparable to those of Western medicines and placebos. While there were adverse events linked with CHM, their frequency was found to be similar to that of placebos but lower than Western medicines. The most commonly utilised standardized formula in the trials was Gui Pi Tang, and the most frequently used single herb was Suan Zao Ren, also known as Ziziphus jujuba.