Herbal medicine (Bojungikki-Tang) for allergic rhinitis

Background: Bojungikki-tang, a herbal medicine for strengthening the digestive system, has been widely used in East Asian countries since the Yuan Dynasty in China. Moreover, Bojungikki-tang has reportedly exhibited anti-allergy effects in many clinical trials. This systematic review will assess the effectiveness and safety of Bojungikki-tang for allergic rhinitis (AR). Methods and analysis: Eleven databases, including Asian databases, will be searched for studies conducted through October 2017. We will include randomized controlled trials (RCTs) assessing Bojungikki-tang for AR. The risk of bias will be evaluated using the Cochrane risk of bias assessment tool, and confidence in the cumulative evidence will be evaluated using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) instrument. Ethics and dissemination: This systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and will also be disseminated electronically and in print. The review will be updated to inform and guide health care practices. Registration: The protocol for this systematic review has been registered in PROSPERO (https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO) under number CRD42017068993. Abbreviations: AR = allergic rhinitis, CAM = complementary and alternative medicine, CENTRAL = Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, CIs = confidence intervals, GRADE = Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation, MDs = Mean differences, PRISMA = Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis, PRISMA-P = PRISMA Protocols, RCTs = randomized controlled trials, RevMan = Review Manager, RRs = relative risks, SMDs = standard MDs, STRICTA = Standards for Reporting Interventions in Clinical Trials of Acupuncture.