Research Article The Effect of Sodium Tanshinone IIA Sulfate and Simvastatin on Elevated Serum Levels of Inflammatory Markers in Patients with Coronary Heart Disease: A Study Protocol for a Randomized

Copyright © 2013 Qinghua Shang et al.This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Background. Coronary heart disease (CHD) due to atherosclerotic inflammation remains a significant threat to global health despite the success of the lipid-lowering, anti-inflammatory statins. Tanshinone IIA, a potent anti-inflammatory compound derived from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), may be able to supplement statins by further reducing levels of circulating inflammatory markers correlated to cardiovascular risk. Here, we present the protocol of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) that will investigate the synergistic effect of sodium tanshinone IIA sulfate and simvastatin on reducing elevated inflammatory markers in patients with CHD. Participants: Seventy-two inpatients with confirmed CHD, elevated serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (Hs-CRP) level, and a TCM diagnosis of blood stasis syndrome will be enrolled and randomized 1: 1 into the control or experimental group. Intervention. All subjects will receive a standard Western therapy including 20mg simvastatin orally once per evening. Patients in the experimental group will additionally receive a daily 80mg dose of sodium tanshinone IIA sulfate intravenously, diluted into 250mL 0.9 % NaCl solution. The treatment period will be 14 days. Outcomes. Primary outcome parameter: serum Hs-CR