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Chinese parenteral phytomedicine reduces mortality from sepsis

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Chinese parenteral phytomedicine reduces mortality from sepsis

October 2023

Phil Rasmussen

Sunday 1 October 2023, 01:00 AM
Carthamus tinctorius
The licenced Chinese herbal medicine Xuebijing is prepared from a combination of plant extracts, including Carthamus tinctorius flowers (safflower) [Image: Pseudoanas via Wikimedia Commons]

Pharmacist and medical herbalist Phil Rasmussen reviews the results of a recent clinical trial that has put the potential role of phytotherapy for the treatment of sepsis into the spotlight

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition in which a dysregulated host response to infection leads to organ dysfunction. It has a complex pathophysiology
References
  1. Singer M, Deutschman CS, Seymour CW, et al. The third international consensus definitions for sepsis and septic shock (Sepsis-3). JAMA 2016;315(8):801–10.
  2. Font MD, Thyagarajan B, Khanna AK. Sepsis and septic shock - Basics of diagnosis, pathophysiology and clinical decision making. Med Clin North Am 2020;104(4):573–85.
  3. Namgung M, Ahn C, Park Y, et al. Mortality among adult patients with sepsis and septic shock in Korea: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Exp Emerg Med 2023;10(2):157–71.
  4. Weng L, Xu Y, Yin P, et al. National incidence and mortality of hospitalized sepsis in China. Crit Care 2023;27(1):84.
  5. Fleischmann C, Scherag A, Adhikari NK, et al. Assessment of global incidence and mortality of hospital-treated sepsis. Current estimates and limitations. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2016;193(3):259–72.
  6. Guarino M, Perna B, Cesaro AE, et al. 2023 update on sepsis and septic shock in adult patients: Management in the emergency department. J Clin Med 2023;12(9):3188.
  7. Varney J, Motawea KR, Kandil OA, et al. Prehospital administration of broad-spectrum antibiotics for sepsis patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Health Sci Rep 2022;5(3):e582.
  8. Taur Y, Xavier JB, Lipuma L, et al. Intestinal domination and the risk of bacteremia in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Clin Infect Dis 2012;55(7):905–14.
  9. Im Y, Kang D, Ko RE, et al. Time-to-antibiotics and clinical outcomes in patients with sepsis and septic shock: a prospective nationwide multicenter cohort study. Crit Care 2022;26(1):19.
  10. Prescott HC, Dickson RP, Rogers MA, et al. Hospitalization type and subsequent severe sepsis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2015;192(5):581–88.
  11. Lou X, Xue J, Shao R, et al. Postbiotics as potential new therapeutic agents for sepsis. Burns Trauma 2023;11:tkad022.
  12. Zhang L, Zhao XY, Guo SY, et al. An inquiry into the treatment of sepsis using plasma exchange therapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Int Wound J 2023;20(6):1979–86.
  13. Yan J, Zhang Y, Zhang J. Clinical efficacy of blood purification in the treatment of sepsis: a meta-analysis of the last 5 years. Clin Lab 2023;69(6):10.7754/Clin.Lab.2022.220931.
  14. Cheng C, Yu X. Research progress in Chinese herbal medicines for treatment of sepsis: Pharmacological action, phytochemistry, and pharmacokinetics. Int J Mol Sci 2021;22(20):11078. 
  15. Zhang L, Yang L, Shergis J, et al. Chinese herbal medicine for diabetic kidney disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised placebo-controlled trials. BMJ Open 2019;9(4):e025653.
  16. Wei M, Wang D, Kang D, et al. Overview of Cochrane reviews on Chinese herbal medicine for stroke. Integr Med Res 2020;9(1):5–9.
  17. Liu S, Yao C, Xie J, et al. Effect of an herbal-based injection on 28-day mortality in patients with sepsis: The EXIT-SEP randomized clinical trial. JAMA Intern Med 2023;183(7):647–55.
  18. Zhou W, Lai X, Wang X, et al. Network pharmacology to explore the anti-inflammatory mechanism of Xuebijing in the treatment of sepsis. Phytomedicine 2021;85:153543.
  19. Wang L, Liu Z, Dong Z, et al. Effects of Xuebijing injection on microcirculation in septic shock. J Surg Res 2016;202(1):147–54.
  20. Li C, Wang P, Li M, et al. The current evidence for the treatment of sepsis with Xuebijing injection: Bioactive constituents, findings of clinical studies and potential mechanisms. J Ethnopharmacol 2021;265:113301.
  21. Song Y, Yao C, Yao Y, et al. XueBiJing injection versus placebo for critically ill patients with severe community-acquired pneumonia: A randomized controlled trial. Crit Care Med 2019;47(9):e735–43.
  22. Liu S, Yao C, Zhang J, et al. Efficacy of Xuebijing injection for sepsis (EXIT-SEP): protocol for a randomised controlled trial. BMJ Open 2019;9(8):e028664. 
  23. van der Poll T, van de Veerdonk FL, Scicluna BP, Netea MG. The immunopathology of sepsis and potential therapeutic targets. Nat Rev Immunol 2017;17(7):407–20.

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