Peer-reviewed article
Erxiekang emplastra as adjunctive therapy for acute gastroenteritis in children: a single-center retrospective cohort study.
Fang C, Zhou Y, Jiang Z, Su X, Fan W ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined whether Erxiekang Emplastra, a traditional medicine patch, could help children hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis recover faster when added to standard treatment. Children who received the patch alongside standard care had shorter diarrhea lasting about one day less and showed less severe symptoms compared to those who received standard treatment alone. The treatment was generally safe, with only mild temporary skin reactions in a small number of children.
Key points
- Children receiving Erxiekang Emplastra plus standard therapy had diarrhea lasting 3.83 days compared to 4.92 days in the standard-only group
- Disease severity at day 3, measured by Modified Vesikari Scale, was lower in the treated group (2.90 vs 4.51)
- Only 1.44% of patients developed mild transient local reactions with no severe adverse events
- The benefit of the patch remained significant even after accounting for other factors using multivariable regression
- Study was conducted in a single center from January 2024 to March 2025 with 1,089 children aged 1-14 years
Limitations
This was a retrospective cohort study from a single center without randomization, so differences between groups may reflect unmeasured factors rather than the treatment itself. The country of origin is not specified, limiting understanding of the healthcare context and applicability to other settings.
Abstract
Background Standard treatments for pediatric acute gastroenteritis (AGE) have critical limitations in symptom control and medication adherence among young children. This study evaluated the efficacy and safety of Erxiekang Emplastra as adjunctive therapy for AGE in children aged 1 to 14 years. Methods This single-center retrospective cohort study reviewed electronic medical records of children hospitalized with AGE between January 2024 and March 2025. Eligible patients were categorized into an exposed group receiving Erxiekang Emplastra plus standard therapy and an unexposed group receiving standard therapy alone. The primary outcome was diarrhea duration; secondary outcomes included the 3-day Modified Vesikari Scale (MVS) and treatment-related adverse events. Multivariable linear regression was conducted to quantify the independent therapeutic benefits of the Erxiekang Emplastra. Results A total of 1,089 eligible patients were included, with 417 in the exposed group and 672 in the unexposed group. The exposed group had significantly shorter diarrhea duration (3.83 vs. 4.92 days, p < 0.01) and lower 3-day MVS (2.90 vs. 4.51, p < 0.01). Adjunctive Erxiekang Emplastra was independently associated with reduced diarrhea duration (β = -0.38, p < 0.01; R2 = 0.19) and lower 3-day MVS (β = -0.44, p < 0.01; R2 = 0.22). Only 1.44% of patients developed mild transient local reactions, with no severe adverse events reported. Conclusion Erxiekang Emplastra showed favorable tolerability in this pediatric AGE cohort, and its adjunctive use was independently associated with shortened diarrhea duration and reduced disease severity. Large-scale, multicenter, prospective randomized controlled trials are warranted to confirm the efficacy and safety of this intervention.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Erxiekang Emplastra (traditional medicine patch) as adjunctive therapy added to standard treatment
- Population
- Children aged 1 to 14 years hospitalized with acute gastroenteritis (417 exposed, 672 unexposed)
Key finding
Diarrhea duration was 1.09 days shorter in exposed group (3.83 vs 4.92 days, p < 0.01)
C et al. · Europe PMC · 11 Jun 2026