Zhao 2015.
| Study characteristics | ||
| Methods | Randomized double‐blinded RCT with parallel design | |
| Participants | 128 consecutive adult participants with non‐ischaemic heart failure were randomised. Inclusion criteria: NYHA functional status II to IV, EF < 40%, and who had received standard heart failure treatment for 3 to 6 months before the study. Exclusion criteria: people with atrial fibrillation before the study, renal or liver dysfunction, acute heart failure, acute coronary syndrome, or heart failure of ischaemic origin 62 participants randomised to coenzyme Q10 group and 66 participants to the control group. |
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| Interventions | Intervention with dose: oral coenzyme Q10 30 mg/day + conventional therapy Control: conventional therapy alone |
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| Outcomes | All outcomes measured at 6 and 12 months Used in this review: left ventricular ejection fraction measured by echocardiography Not used in this review (not outcomes of interest): incidence of atrial fibrillation, left ventricular end diastolic diameter (LVED) and left atrial end‐diastolic diameter, TNF‐α and IL‐6, high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein (hs‐CRP), malondialdehyde (MDA). |
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| Notes | 14 participants died and 12 participants lost to follow‐up and were excluded. Only 102 participants completed the study and were included in the analysis. | |
| Risk of bias | ||
| Bias | Authors' judgement | Support for judgement |
| Random sequence generation (selection bias) | Unclear risk | Study was mentioned to be randomised, however, random sequence generation method was not mentioned |
| Allocation concealment (selection bias) | Unclear risk | Details about allocation concealment were not mentioned |
| Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) All outcomes | Low risk | Double‐blind |
| Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) All outcomes | Low risk | Physicians, echocardiography staff, laboratory, and the statistician were all blinded to the study. |
| Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) All outcomes | High risk | 14 participants died and 12 participants lost to follow‐up and were excluded. Only 102 participants (of 128 randomised) completed the study and were included in the analysis. |
| Selective reporting (reporting bias) | Unclear risk | Study protocol could not be located |
| Other bias | Low risk | No other risk of bias was found. |
LVEF: left ventricular ejection fraction
NYHA: New York Heart Association RCT: randomised controlled trial