Herbal medicines for the treatment of osteoarthritis: a systematic review

Objective. Limitations in the conventional medical management of osteoarthr itis indicate a real need for safe and effective treatment of osteoarthriti s patients. Herbal medicines may provide a solution to this problem. The ai m of this article was to review systematically all randomized controlled tr ials on the effectiveness of herbal medicines in the treatment of osteoarth ritis. Methods. Computerized literature searches were carried out on five electron ic databases. Trial data were extracted in a standardized, predefined manne r and assessed independently. Results. Twelve trials and two systematic reviews fulfilled the inclusion c riteria. The authors found promising evidence for the effective use of some herbal preparations in the treatment of osteoarthritis. In addition, evide nce suggesting that some herbal preparations reduce consumption of non-ster oidal anti-inflammatory drugs was found. The reviewed herbal medicines appe ar relatively safe. Conclusions. Some herbal medicines may offer a much-needed alternative for patients with osteoarthritis.