2.1.1 Search strategy
A comprehensive search was performed on the major databases, namely PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science, covering all publications since their establishment up to March 2023, without any publication restrictions. To ensure a comprehensive search, the appropriate search term ”treatment combined with disease” was selected for identifying relevant studies on icariin’s efficacy in inhibiting inflammation. Keywords related to icariin, Epimedium, Yin Yang Huo, inflammation, and inflammatory disease were searched in the databases (Supplementary Form 1).