title: A meta-analysis of red yeast rice: an effective and relatively safe alternative approach for dyslipidemia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To explore whether red yeast rice is a safe and effective alternative approach for dyslipidemia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pubmed, the Cochrane Library, EBSCO host, Chinese VIP Information (VIP), China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang Databases were searched for appropriate articles. Randomized trials of RYR (not including Xuezhikang and Zhibituo) and placebo as control in patients with dyslipidemia were considered. Two authors read all papers and independently extracted all relevant information. The primary outcomes were serum total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), triglyceride (TG), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). The secondary outcomes were increased levels of alanine transaminase, aspartate aminotransferase, creatine kinase, creatinine and fasting blood glucose.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 13 randomized, placebo-controlled trials containing 804 participants were analyzed. Red yeast rice exhibited significant lowering effects on serum TC [WMD = -0.97 (95% CI: -1.13, -0.80) mmol/L, P<0.001], TG [WMD = -0.23 (95% CI: -0.31, -0.14) mmol/L, P<0.001], and LDL-C [WMD = -0.87 (95% CI: -1.03, -0.71) mmol/L, P<0.001] but no significant increasing effect on HDL-C [WMD = 0.08 (95% CI: -0.02, 0.19) mmol/L, P = 0.11] compared with placebo. No serious side effects were reported in all trials.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The meta-analysis suggests that red yeast rice is an effective and relatively safe approach for dyslipidemia. However, further long-term, rigorously designed randomized controlled trials are still warranted before red yeast rice could be recommended to patients with dyslipidemia, especially as an alternative to statins.
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yinhua
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Long
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Zhangrong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Shiwei
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Qiu
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Department of Arteriosclerosis, Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Luya
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D001688:Biological Products / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000529:Complementary Therapies; D050171:Dyslipidemias / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D017594:Publication Bias; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D001688:Biological Products; D008055:Lipids; C117343:red yeast rice