• Xiang Feng, Keshang Li, Quanrui Jiang, Yuxing Zhang, Zhichao Gong, Hui Zhi, Jun Yu, Wu Li, and Jiangshan Li.
• School of Acupuncture-Moxibustion and Tuina, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha, Hunan, China.
• Medicine (Baltimore). 2022 Mar 4; 101 (9): e28957e28957.

BackgroundAutism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by impairments in social communication, social interaction, and restrictive or repetitive behaviors. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used in the clinical management of ASD, especially in mainland China, where studies have shown promising efficacy. However, this remains to be further explored and clarified. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of conventional treatment-based TCM interventions for ASD.MethodThe study will be conducted from January 2022, and the following electronic databases will be searched: China Biological Medicine Database, Chinese Scientific Journals Database, Wan Fang database, and China National Knowledge Infrastructure, the Cochrane Library, Web of Science, PubMed, and EMBASE Database. Only randomized controlled trials of TCM interventions for ASD will be included. The Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale, Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised, and Childhood Autism Rating Scale will be the primary outcome indicators. The methodological quality of this Bayesian-based network meta-analysis will be performed using the "Risk of Bias" tool. Stata 14.0 and WinBUGS 1.4.3 will be used to analyze the data. In addition, assessment of heterogeneity, inconsistency, subgroups, sensitivity, and publication bias will be conducted using the Cochrane Collaboration's tools.ResultsThe results of this study will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal for publication.ConclusionThis study will help patients recover better, provide clinical evidence for practitioners, and promote the use of TCM in ASD interventions.Copyright © 2022 the Author(s). Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc.

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