title: Chinese medicine formula DSQRL versus glucocorticoids for the treatment of experimental pulmonary fibrosis.
abstract: Pulmonary fibrosis (PF) is a devastating interstitial lung disease that may develop idiopathically or as a complication of many other diseases. The outcome of the current main treatment by glucocorticoids is by no means satisfactory. This study has tested a new Chinese medicine Decoction for Strengthening Qi and Replenishing Lung (DSQRL) for the treatment of experimental PF in comparison with prednisolone. Eighty-five rats with PF induced by CCl(4) were randomly divided into 4 groups to undertake treatment either by (a) high dose of prednisolone; (b) Chinese medicine formula DSQRL; (c) combined treatment of the above two; or (d) sham feeding of water in equal volume. At the end of 60 days treatment, the DSQRL treatment achieved a significantly better outcome than prednisolone in terms of general behavior, histological examination, hydroxyproline content of the lung and inflammatory cell counts in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid. Thus, the newly proposed Chinese medicinal formula DSQRL appears to be a better and promising option for PF than glucocorticoids for the treatment of PF.
authors.affiliation: School of Chinese Medicine, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China. hqzhang@hkbu.edu.hk
authors.forename: Hong-Qi
authors.initials: HQ
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Yu-Fung
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Yau
authors.forename: Man-Sin
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Oi-Yan
authors.initials: OY
authors.lastname: Man
authors.forename: Ying-Ying
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Nickie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid; D008297:Male; D008516:Medicine, Chinese Traditional; D011241:Prednisone / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D011241:Prednisone