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Stories for Reprint
Chinese Vine
Shows Promise for Arthritis
By Ferdous Al-Faruque, MARRTC Staff
For years, Chinese doctors have been using extracts of a vine called Lei Gong Teng, for various medical symptoms including fevers and inflammation. A new American study has found that extracts from the vine could also be effective in treating rheumatoid arthritis.
Over two million Americans are estimated to have rheumatoid arthritis where the body's immune system fails and attacks joints. Though this potentially debilitating disease is most common in older adults and women, people of all ages can have it.
The new study found that people with rheumatoid arthritis who were treated with the vine extract fared better than those treated with sulfasalazine, a drug commonly used to treat the disease. The National Institutes of Health, along with several research groups and medical centers around the United States collaborated on the study. Over one hundred participants with rheumatoid arthritis were divided into two groups. Half the participants were given the extract while the other half took sulfasalazine over 24 weeks. Those who took the extract had less symptoms such as swollen and painful joints. They also felt better overall and had less disability. Raphaela Goldbach-Mansky, the principal investigator of the study, says the extract significantly reduced joint inflammation and also pain unlike sulfasalazine, which had much weaker effects.
Furthermore, those who took the extract not only showed more improvement but also improved faster. "What was quite impressive is that the (extract) acted very early," says Goldbach-Mansky, a rheumatologist with the National Institutes of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. Within two weeks of the study, researchers began noticing improvements in the participants who took the extract.
Of the 24 people who dropped out of the study because of side effects, 17 of them were on sulfasalazine and seven were on the extract. The side effects of both sulfasalazine and the extract were similar and related to gastrointestinal problems in most cases. Goldbach-Mansky says by starting people off with a lower dosage and gradually raising it, they could possibly have increased tolerance to the drug. She adds that doing so could possibly have reduced the number of people with side effects and the dropout rate.
Currently, the vine extract is not readily available in the United States though people can buy it on the Internet, but should avoid doing so. Goldbach-Mansky warns extracts purchased on the Internet are not prepared in a standardized process and may contain harmful chemicals. She adds that even though the extract has shown a great deal of promise so far, it hasn't been approved by the Food and Drug Administration and needs to be fully tested to make sure it is safe.
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