|
Chinese Herbals Studied
as Hepatitis B Treatment
Excerpt
By Charnicia E. Huggins, Reuter's Health
NEW YORK (Reuters
Health) - Chinese herbal medicine, commonly
used to treat chronic hepatitis B in China, may be effective against
the virus, particularly when combined with interferon medical
treatment, according to an analysis of 27 studies published in
Chinese-language medical journals and Western medical literature.
However, the researchers were unable
to come to a "firm conclusion" because of the generally poor quality
of studies of the subject, according to the report in the October
issue of the American Journal of Public Health, journal of the
American Public Health Association.
The researchers used a database to
comb through Chinese-language medical journals, which only recently
became available. They reviewed studies that either compared Chinese
herbal medicine with interferon, a protein that blocks virus reproduction,
or that compared a combination of the two treatments with interferon
alone. The Chinese herbal medicines used varied with each study
and included anywhere from one herb to as many as 22 different
herbs in combination.
In general, study findings indicate
that patients treated with the combined Chinese herbal medicine
and interferon therapy were twice as likely to have successful
treatment of hepatitis B as those who were treated with interferon
alone, the investigators report.
"The best outcomes were achieved by
using interferon and Chinese herbs in combination," lead study
author Michael McCulloch, a doctoral student at the University
of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health told Reuters
Health. In this way it may be "possible to increase the effectiveness
of interferon," he said.
Much of the Chinese-language research
that showed this to be true, however, was of poor quality, McCulloch
and his team report.
"Study quality is often a problem
in Western medical journals as well, but this need is especially
pronounced in the traditional Chinese medicine journals published
in China," study co-author Dr. Jack Colford, Jr. told Reuters
Health.
Further, when the two treatments were
pitted against each other, the herbal medicine was found to be
slightly more effective than the interferon treatment, the report
indicates.
Yet, despite these findings, McCulloch
and his team were unable to draw firm conclusions about the effectiveness
of Chinese herbal medicine because of the poor quality of many
of the Chinese-language studies, they report.
For example, the Chinese-language
studies were highly condensed and omitted important details about
the study design, such as whether the researchers used the tried-and-true
"double-blind" study method or if patients and physicians were
aware of who was receiving which treatment.
"We hope that our study will encourage medical researchers in China
to provide more thorough reporting of treatment details and patient
characteristics in their published studies," Colford said.
McCulloch added that patients with
hepatitis B who are currently receiving interferon treatment should
not discontinue their treatment. Those who are interested in supplementing
the interferon with Chinese herbal medicine, however, should speak
to a trained specialist and "review the proposed treatment plan
with their doctor," he said.
An estimated 2 billion people throughout
the world are infected with hepatitis B and 350 million people
have the chronic form of the disease, which is associated with
an increased risk of liver cancer, according to the report. Nearly
three quarters of those with chronic hepatitis B live in Asia.
SOURCE: American Journal of Public
Health 2002;92:1619-1627.
Reference
Source 89
For more information on how to prevent other diseases, use
PreventDisease.com's "Quick
Prevention Resources".
|
