Effect of adjuvant treatment with Xiyanping injection on the prognosis of viral encephalitis in children: a multicenter retrospective study

Wen Tian ¹, Yang Chen ², Huazhang Liu ^3,4

¹College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.
²Department of Pediatrics, Liaocheng People's Hospital, Liaocheng, Shandong, China.
³Department of Pediatrics, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong, China.
⁴Shandong Engineering and Technology Research Center for Pediatric Drug Development, Shandong, China.
⁵Wuhan Jinyintan Hospital Infected Ward One, Wuhan, Hubei, China.
⁶Department of Infectious Diseases, Tianjin Second People's Hospital, Tianjin, China.
⁷Department of Neurology, Shanghai Children's Medical Center, School of Medicine, Shanghai JiaoTong University, Shanghai, China.
⁸Department of Pediatrics, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou, China.
⁹National Key Laboratory of Intelligent Tracking and Forecasting for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
¹⁰Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
¹¹National Center for Infectious Diseases(Beijing), Beijing Ditan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

⁰College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

Frontiers in Pharmacology +

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November 17, 2025

View abstract on PubMed

Summary

Xiyanping injection (XYPI) treatment may improve outcomes for children with viral encephalitis (VE). This study found XYPI reduced costs and complications, offering a potential protective factor for pediatric VE patients.

Area Of Science

Neurology
Pediatrics
Pharmacology

Background

Viral encephalitis (VE) is a severe neurological disorder impacting childhood development.
Xiyanping injection (XYPI), a traditional Chinese medicine, possesses anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and neuroprotective properties.

Purpose Of The Study

To evaluate the efficacy of Xiyanping injection (XYPI) as an adjuvant therapy in pediatric patients with viral encephalitis (VE).
To identify risk factors associated with poor prognosis in pediatric VE and assess the impact of XYPI on clinical outcomes and healthcare costs.

Main Methods

A retrospective study of 635 pediatric VE inpatients across seven Chinese medical centers (2015-2021).
Comparison of outcomes between patients treated with XYPI (n=480) and those without (n=155).
Propensity score matching was utilized to control for confounding variables.

Main Results

XYPI treatment was identified as an independent protective factor against poor prognosis in pediatric VE (OR=0.251, p<0.001).
XYPI significantly reduced fever and headache duration, lowered hospitalization costs, and decreased the incidence of respiratory infections, myocardial injury, and sequelae (all p<0.05).

Conclusions

Adjuvant XYPI therapy shows potential for improving clinical outcomes and reducing the economic burden in pediatric VE.
Further randomized controlled trials are necessary to confirm these findings and establish XYPI's role in VE management.

Keywords:

Xiyanping injection complementary alternative medicine economic burden prognosis viral encephalitis (VE)