ObjectiveTo systematically review the efficacy and safety of selective calcium channel blockers (SCCBs) versus placebo for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients. MethodsWe searched databases including PubMed, EMbase, the Cochrane Library, CBM, WanFang Data, VIP and CNKI for relevant randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of SCCB versus placebo for IBS patients from inception to August, 2013. Two reviewers independently screened literature according to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, extracted data, and assessed the risk of bias of included studies. Then, meta-analysis was performed by RevMan 5.3 software. ResultsA total of 12 RCTs involving 1 325 patients were included. The results of meta-analysis showed that: The total effective rate (RR=2.06, 95%CI 1.56 to 2.73, P<0.000 01, NNT=3), abdominal pain remission rate (RR=1.47, 95%CI 1.31 to 1.65, P<0.000 01, NNT=5), and abdominal distension remission rate (RR=1.48, 95%CI 1.10 to 2.00, P=0.01, NNT=5) in the SCCB group were significantly higher than those in the placebo group. The adverse reaction rate of the SCCB group was also significantly higher than that of the placebo group (RD=3%, 95%CI 2% to 4%, P=0.002), but all adverse reactions of the SCCB group were minor. Subgroup analysis based on different SCCBs showed that there were no significant differences between the otilonium bromide subgroup and the pinaverium bromide subgroup in above outcomes (all P values >0.05). ConclusionCurrent evidence shows that SCCBs can improve the symptoms of IBS with minor side-effects. Due to limited quality and quantity of included studies, more large-scale high-quality studies are needed to verify the above conclusion.