Presentation (CTI)

OBJECTIVES: To analyze the treatment patterns of Chinese patent medicines (CPMs) for acute cough in real-world settings and evaluate their short-term effectiveness in reducing cough-related emergency visits.
METHODS: A total of 1790 valid acute cough cases with CPM treatment were enrolled from the Regional Health Database of Taizhou, China, from January 2024 to June 2025. The characteristics of CPM regimen selection were analyzed; patients were divided into Suhuang Zhike Capsule group (405 cases) and other commonly used CPMs group (1,385 cases). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze CPM treatment patterns, and differences in cough-related emergency visit rates between the two groups at different time points were compared.
RESULTS: The study population had a mean age of 51.1 ± 11.3 years, with 59.0% being female. Among the commonly used CPMs, Feilike Mixture was the most prevalent (31.7%), followed by Suhuang Zhike Capsules and Qiangli Pipa Syrup (both 22.6%). Of the CPM treatment regimens, 57.0% were combined with antibiotics, 34.4% with antiviral drugs, and 8.4% with antihistamines. The overall cough-related emergency visit rates of CPM-treated patients at 7 days, 14 days, 1 month, and 3 months were 6.6%, 8.1%, 9.1%, and 11.5%, respectively. The Suhuang Zhike Capsule group consistently had the lowest cough-related emergency visit rates at all time points, which were significantly lower than those in the other commonly used CPMs group (7-day: 3.2% vs. 7.7%, P=0.002; 14-day: 4.4% vs. 9.2%, P=0.002; 1-month: 5.2% vs. 10.3%, P=0.002; 3-month: 7.9% vs. 12.6%, P=0.009).
CONCLUSIONS: The treatment regimens of CPMs for acute cough in real-world settings show a relatively concentrated distribution. Suhuang Zhike Capsules are superior to other commonly used CPMs in reducing the risk of short-term cough-related emergency visits, which provides a valuable reference for clinical treatment decisions.