TABLE 4.
Subgroup analysis for outcomes.
| Subgroup | No. of studies | Effect size (95% CI) | p-value | Heterogeneity | p-value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subgroup analyses for FS-14 scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 17 | WMD −1.84 (−2.23, −1.45) | <0.001 | 85.9 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 5 | WMD −1.90 (−2.75, −1.05) | <0.001 | 85.0 | <0.001 | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 10 | WMD −1.97 (−2.36, −1.58) | <0.001 | 66.7 | <0.01 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 1 | WMD −1.88 (−3.13, −0.63) | <0.01 | — | — | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 4 | WMD −1.67 (−2.34, −1.00) | <0.001 | 81.2 | <0.01 | |
| CHM vs. GET | 1 | WMD −1.23 (−1.96, −0.50) | <0.01 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 3 | WMD −1.84 (−1.98, −1.70) | <0.001 | 54.8 | = 0.109 | |
| CHM vs. health guidance | 1 | WMD −3.14 (−3.83, −2.45) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for FAI scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 7 | WMD −15.49 (−28.39, −2.60) | = 0.019 | 99.6 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 2 | WMD -32.15 (−33.76, −30.53) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.829 | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 2 | WMD −18.24 (−28.11, −8.38) | <0.001 | 40.9 | = 0.193 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 3 | WMD −2.88 (−6.15, 0.38) | = 0.084 | 87.7 | <0.001 | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 1 | WMD −12.04 (−16.96, −7.12) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. GET | 1 | WMD −21.80 (−33.42, −10.18) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for SCL-90 scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 4 | WMD −9.52 (−12.08, −6.97) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.533 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD −27.71 (−52.10, −3.32) | = 0.026 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for SAS scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 3 | WMD −9.14 (−17.31, −0.97) | = 0.028 | 95.4 | <0.001 | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 2 | WMD −4.55 (−7.51, −1.58) | <0.01 | 68.3 | = 0.076 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 1 | WMD −5.94 (−7.98, −3.90) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 1 | WMD −2.90 (−5.56, −0.24) | = 0.033 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD −6.77 (−7.08, −6.46) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. health guidance | 1 | WMD −6.55 (−8.84, −4.26) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for SDS scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 2 | WMD −5.97 (−10.67, −1.28) | = 0.013 | 86.6 | <0.01 | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 2 | WMD −4.17 (−7.07, −1.27) | <0.01 | 64 | = 0.095 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 1 | WMD −5.69 (−8.25, −3.13) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 1 | WMD −2.73 (−5.09, −0.37) | = 0.023 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD −6.42 (−6.65, −6.19) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| CHM vs. health guidance | 1 | WMD −4.23 (−5.72, −2.74) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Clinical symptom scores | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 18 | WMD −6.60 (−7.89, −5.31) | <0.001 | 96.9 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 11 | WMD −8.40 (−11.00, −5.80) | <0.001 | 97.1 | <0.001 | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 3 | WMD −3.37 (−4.77, −1.96) | <0.001 | 80.5 | <0.01 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 1 | WMD −5.22 (−5.69, −4.75) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 2 | WMD −2.82 (−3.45, −2.20) | <0.001 | 47.3 | = 0.168 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 3 | WMD −3.13 (−3.99, −2.27) | <0.001 | 95.2 | <0.001 | |
| CHM vs. health guidance | 1 | WMD −6.73 (−7.57, −5.89) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for IGA | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 7 | WMD 0.31 (0.18, 0.43) | <0.001 | 75.9 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 1 | WMD 0.24 (0.06, 0.42) | <0.01 | — | — | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 3 | WMD 0.38 (0.23, 0.54) | <0.001 | 73.2 | = 0.024 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 3 | WMD 0.21 (−0.12, 0.53) | = 0.218 | 86.1 | <0.01 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD 0.26 (0.20, 0.32) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for IGG | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 7 | WMD 2.21 (0.90, 3.51) | <0.01 | 94.0 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 1 | WMD 20.61 (15.97, 25.25) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 3 | WMD 1.30 (0.23, 2.38) | = 0.018 | 80.5 | <0.01 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 3 | WMD 0.95 (−0.36, 2.27) | = 0.154 | 89.1 | <0.001 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD 1.39 (1.22, 1.56) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for IGM | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 7 | WMD 0.20 (0.10, 0.29) | <0.001 | 69.3 | <0.01 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 1 | WMD 0.02 (−0.10, 0.15) | = 0.712 | — | — | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 3 | WMD 0.24 (0.16, 0.33) | <0.001 | 25.4 | = 0.262 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 3 | WMD 0.21 (0.03, 0.38) | = 0.019 | 68.1 | = 0.044 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 1 | WMD 0.28 (0.24, 0.32) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Subgroup analyses for NK cell | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 2 | WMD 0.94 (−1.14, 3.03) | = 0.376 | 0 | = 0.613 | |
| CHM vs. Placebo | 1 | WMD 0.94 (−1.14, 3.03) | <0.001 | — | — | |
| Effective Rate | ||||||
| CHM vs. WCM | 59 | RR 1.43 (1.33, 1.52) | <0.001 | 76.6 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 25 | RR 1.64 (1.43, 1.89) | <0.001 | 82.6 | <0.001 | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤60 days | 19 | RR 1.38 (1.23, 1.54) | <0.001 | 77 | <0.001 | |
| Duration of intervention > 60 days | 11 | RR 1.28 (1.20, 1.37) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.590 | |
| CHM plus WCM vs. WCM | 12 | RR 1.20 (1.13, 1.27) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.762 | |
| Duration of intervention ≤ 30 days | 7 | RR 1.22 (1.14, 1.32) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.918 | |
| 30 days < duration of intervention ≤ 60 days | 3 | RR 1.13 (0.99, 1.28) | = 0.062 | 31.1 | = 0.234 | |
| CHM vs. GET | 1 | RR 1.16 (0.98, 1.38) | = 0.093 | — | — | |
| CHM plus GET vs. GET | 2 | RR 1.39 (1.06, 1.83) | = 0.019 | 56.1 | = 0.131 | |
| CHM vs. placebo | 4 | RR 2.54 (2.00, 3.22) | <0.001 | 0 | = 0.943 | |
| CHM vs. health guidance | 1 | RR 6.59 (2.54, 17.12) | <0.001 | — | — | |
FS-14: Fatigue Scale; FAI: Fatigue Assessment Instrument; SCL-90: Self-Rating Scale of mental state; SAS: Self-Rating Anxiety Scale; SDS: Self-Rating Depression Scale; CHM: Chinese herbal medicine; WCM: western conventional medicine; GET: graded exercise therapy; WMD: weighted mean difference; RR: relative risk.