Objective To assess the efficiency of Kansui root in the treatment of patients with severe acute pancreatitis. Methods Trials were identified by searching CNKI, VIP, CBM, PubMed, EMbase, and The Cochrane Library. Randomized controlled trials ( RCTs) and quasi-randomized controlled trials (quasi-RCT) were included. Two reviewers assessed the quality of each study and extracted data independently. Statistical analysis was performed by using RevMan 4.2.7. Results Finally, four trials involving 240 patients were included. All included trials were quasi-RCT. Meta-analysis showed that the Kansui group had the tendency of reducing early deaths [RR=0.45, 95%CI(0.23, 0.89)], shortening the course of treatment, reducing the incidence of hyperamylasemia, and reducing the mean hospitalization stay. Moreover, the duration of abdominal pain and distension were shortened, and conversion to operation rate and incidence of complications of SAP were reduced significantly compared with the control group. Conclusion There was not enough evidence to support the Kansui root’s effectiveness present since the included trials are of poor quality. Therefore, large-scale high-quality RCTs are needed.
