Oral herbal medicines marketed in Brazil for the treatment of osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Del et al., 2017 | Phytother Res | Meta Analysis

Citation

Del Grossi Moura Mariana, Lopes Luciane Cruz, ... de Cássia Bergamaschi Cristiane. Oral herbal medicines marketed in Brazil for the treatment of osteoarthritis: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Phytother Res. 2017-Nov;31(11):1676-1685. doi:10.1002/ptr.5910

Abstract

Herbal medications are commonly used to manage symptoms associated with osteoarthritis (OA). This systematic review evaluated the effectiveness and safety of oral medications used in Brazil for the treatment of OA. Randomized clinical trials involving adults with OA treated by a herbal medicine or a control group were eligible. The primary outcomes measured were pain, physical function, swelling, stiffness and quality of life; and the secondary outcomes were adverse events, activity limitations and treatment satisfaction. Sixteen studies were included (n = 1,741 patients) in the systematic review and nine studies in the meta-analysis, representing 6 of the 13 herbal medicines studied: Boswellia serrata (n = 2), Curcuma longa (n = 3), Harpagophytum procumbens (n = 1), Salix daphnoides (n = 3), Uncaria guianensis (n = 2) and Zingiber officinale (n = 5). B. serrata was more effective than both placebo and valdecoxib for improvement of pain and physical function. No difference was observed for H. procumbens, C. longa and U. guianensis compared with control. Z. officinale showed improvement of pain over placebo. The evidence was insufficient to support the effective and safe use of these herbal medicines, because the quality of evidence of studies was low. This study guides managers of the Brazilian public health system and prescribers in decision-making regarding the use of these herbal medicines for OA. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Findings

Outcomes Measured

Requires manual extraction

Population

Field	Value
Population	See abstract
Sample Size	1741
Age Range	See abstract
Condition	See abstract

MeSH Terms

Boswellia
Brazil
Curcuma
Zingiber officinale
Harpagophytum
Herbal Medicine
Humans
Osteoarthritis
Phytotherapy
Plant Preparations
Plants, Medicinal
Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic
Salix
Uncaria

Evidence Classification

Level: Meta Analysis
Publication Types: Journal Article, Meta-Analysis, Systematic Review
Vertical: ginger

Provenance

PMID: 28872719
DOI: 10.1002/ptr.5910
PMCID: Not in PMC
Verified: 2026-04-09 via PubMed E-utilities API

Source extracted via PubMed E-utilities API on 2026-04-09