Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2001 Jul;40(7):779-93.
doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/40.7.779.

Herbal medicines for the treatment of osteoarthritis: a systematic review

L Long  1 , K Soeken, E Ernst
Affiliations

Herbal medicines for the treatment of osteoarthritis: a systematic review

L Long et al. Rheumatology (Oxford). 2001 Jul.

Abstract

Objective: Limitations in the conventional medical management of osteoarthritis indicate a real need for safe and effective treatment of osteoarthritis patients. Herbal medicines may provide a solution to this problem. The aim of this article was to review systematically all randomized controlled trials on the effectiveness of herbal medicines in the treatment of osteoarthritis.

Methods: Computerized literature searches were carried out on five electronic databases. Trial data were extracted in a standardized, predefined manner and assessed independently.

Results: Twelve trials and two systematic reviews fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The authors found promising evidence for the effective use of some herbal preparations in the treatment of osteoarthritis. In addition, evidence suggesting that some herbal preparations reduce consumption of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs was found. The reviewed herbal medicines appear relatively safe.

Conclusions: Some herbal medicines may offer a much-needed alternative for patients with osteoarthritis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

Publication types