Rikkunshito for upper gastrointestinal symptoms: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Upper gastrointestinal symptoms are major issues in various diseases such as postgastrectomy syndrome and functional dyspepsia. These symptoms cannot be fully controlled in such conditions and result in poorer quality of life. Rikkunshito has been traditionally used in Japan to relieve these symptoms. This systematic review assessed the efficacy and safety of rikkunshito for relieving upper gastrointestinal symptoms.

A systematic literature search was conducted using Ovid MEDLINE, Scopus, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and ICHUSHI. Randomized controlled trials comparing rikkunshito to alternative drugs for the treatment of upper gastrointestinal symptoms were searched without language restriction. Two review authors independently assessed the literature and extracted data from identified studies. The risk of bias in each study was assessed.

Twenty-four studies with a combined total of 2175 participants were included in this review. Rikkunshito did not significantly relieve upper gastrointestinal symptoms when compared with other treatments via the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale (standardized mean difference, -0.07; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.31 to 0.17; P =  0.59), while it significantly relieved the symptoms on a 5-point scale (mean difference, -0.38; 95% CI, -0.55 to -0.21; P <  0.001). No drug-related severe adverse events were reported. Most of the included studies had high or unclear overall risk of bias.

It remains still unclear whether rikkunshito is effective for the relief of upper gastrointestinal symptoms. Further high-quality studies are needed.