Correlations between Phlegm Syndrome of Chinese Medicine and Coronary Angiography: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Phlegm is one of the most common patterns of coronary artery disease (CAD) in Chinese medicine. Our research was aimed at investigating the association between phlegm syndrome of CAD and coronary angiography (CAG) by meta-analysis. According to inclusion criteria, a total of 30 studies involving 5,055 CAD patients were included. The meta-analysis showed that phlegm syndrome patients were prone to multivessel disease (28 studies, OR = 1.53, 95% CI, 1.24 to 1.88, P < 0.01) and higher Gensini score (2 studies, OR = 5.90, 95% CI, 1.86 to 9.94, P = 0.004), but not obviously relevant to severe stenosis (≥75%) of coronary arteries (13 studies, OR = 1.20, 95% CI, 0.63 to 2.27, P = 0.57). We concluded that the coronary arteries lesions of CAD patients with phlegm syndrome were more severe than those with nonphlegm syndromes. Phlegm syndrome should, therefore, be regarded as a dangerous pattern of CAD with worse prognosis.

The Relationship between the Second-Generation Antipsychotics Efficacy and the Traditional Chinese Medicine Body Constitutions in Patients with Schizophrenia

“…Micro-circulation obstruction, abnormal haemorheology, unstable haemodynamics, abnormal platelet and endothelium, dysfunctional anticoagulation, and fibrinolysis: all conditions which lead to blood stasis [38]. Some studies proposed that possessing Stasis BC is significantly associated with hyperlipidaemia, atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, or coronary artery disease [38][39][40]. Several studies demonstrated that olanzapine is a relatively unsafe drug, especially for patients who have coronary heart disease [41][42][43][44].…”

The Interrelationships between Intestinal Permeability and Phlegm Syndrome and Therapeutic Potential of Some Medicinal Herbs

“…Alzheimer's disease [42] Acne [40] AIDS, HIV infection [44] Alcoholism [43] Atopy/Eczema [40,53] Autism [41] Cancers [38] Celiac disease [26] Chronic fatigue and immune dysfunction syndrome [46] Chronic arthritis/pain treated with NSAIDs [47] Coronary heart disease [45] Crohn's disease [17] Cystic fibrosis [48] Dermatitis herpetiformis [49] Diabetes mellitus [33] Gastroenteritis [54] Inflammatory bowel disease [12] Irritable bowel syndrome [55,56] Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease [39] Obesity [33] Pancreatic dysfunction [50] Psoriasis [51] Rheumatoid arthritis [36] Schizophrenia [37] Urticaria [52] Ulcerative colitis [17] Alzheimer's disease (dementia) [57] Acne [58] AIDS, HIV infection [59] Asthma [60] Atopy [61] Autism [62] Bronchiectasis [63] Cancers [3] Celiac disease [64] Coronary heart disease [65] Coronary artery disease [66] Diabetes mellitus [67] Irritable bowel syndrome [64] Epilepsy [68] Hyperlipidemia [69] Hypertension…”

“…Liver Qi stagnation also contributes to Phlegm production [3]. Phlegm is defined as a viscous and turbid pathological factor that is formed due to an imbalance in body fluid concentration and accumulates in certain parts of the body after condensation [3,66]. Phlegm can be released by the body (external or secretory form) in the form of sputum and nasal secretions from the respiratory tract, or it may be produced internally and may not be released (internal form) [89].…”

“…The process of distinguishing each syndrome involves the careful assessment of symptoms and signs using accepted criteria. The process is likely affected by the knowledge, clinical experience, academic background, and methods used by the physician, along with other factors [ 66 ]. Subsequently, the use of systems biology techniques allows thorough investigations based on a holistic approach.…”

“…Patients with Phlegm-Dampness syndrome are considered to be susceptible to multiple metabolic diseases [ 116 ]. This could be attributed to the fact that Phlegm tends to accumulate in different body parts, which might give rise to various diseases such as acne [ 58 ], AIDS [ 59 ], asthma [ 60 ], autism [ 62 ], obesity [ 73 ], type 2 diabetes mellitus [ 67 , 70 , 116 ], coronary artery disease [ 66 ], coronary heart disease [ 65 ], metabolic syndrome [ 73 ], NAFLD [ 72 ], hypertension [ 70 ], hyperlipidemia [ 69 ], bronchiectasis [ 63 ], stroke [ 74 ], AD [ 57 ], scrofula [ 75 ], and epilepsy [ 117 ] ( Table 1 ). Table 1 lists the diseases associated with leaky gut and Phlegm syndromes, which are considerably similar.…”