Effect of Herbal Medicines on Postpartum Hemorrhage: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Postpartum hemorrhage is one of the most common causes of maternal mortality worldwide.

The present systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of herbal medicines on a postpartum hemorrhage.

The largest proportion of articles with funding information was found from 2000 to 2020 were included using PubMed, Scopus, ISI Web of Science, Cochrane, Magiran, SID, and Google Scholar databases. The relevant English keywords, "postpartum hemorrhage، PPH control, PPH prevention, phytotherapy, herbal medicine, complementary medicine, traditional medicine” were used to search for the eligible studies. Data were analyzed using STATA software (version 11).

The results indicate heterogeneity in the studies (I2=0.87). Standardized mean difference was (SMD= -1.08, 95% CI: (-1.31, -0.85), P<0.001), (SMD= -0.80, 95% CI: (-1.03, -0.58), P<0.001), (SMD= -1.13, 95% CI: (-1.36, -0.90), P<0.001) in the first, second and third hour after delivery, respectively. The bleeding rate was statistically lower in the intervention group than that of the control group.

This meta-analysis indicated the positive role of herbal medicines in reducing postpartum hemorrhage. Therefore, herbal medicines might be a proper substitute for chemical medicines and could be used in combination with pharmaceutical drugs such as oxytocin to reduce early postpartum hemorrhage.