Nutritional supplements and herbal medicines for women with polycystic ovary syndrome; a systematic review and meta-analysis

BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine

Research Article

Caroline A. Smith¹  Susan Arentz¹  Alan Bensoussan¹  Jason Abbott² 

[1] National Institute of Complementary Medicine, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, 2751, Penrith, NSW, Australia;School of Women’s and Children’s Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia;

关键词: Polycystic ovary syndrome;    PCOS;    Supplements;    Vitamins;    Herbal medicine;    Complementary medicine;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12906-017-2011-x

 received in 2017-01-12, accepted in 2017-11-16,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundPolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common, reproductive endocrinopathy associated with serious short and long term health risks. Many women with PCOS use ingestible complementary medicines. This systematic review examined the effect on menstrual regulation and adverse effects from randomised controlled trials.MethodsRandomised controlled trials (RCTs) that compared herbal or nutritional supplements to placebo or active controls in women with PCOS were eligible for inclusion. Electronic databases were searched to July 2017. Study selection and assessment of quality were conducted independently by two review authors.ResultsTwenty four studies (1406 women) investigating seven nutritional supplements and four herbal medicines were included. No one study was assessed as having a low risk of bias. Four trials reported on the primary endpoint menstrual regulation. There was no evidence on improved menstrual regularity for calcium plus vitamin D compared to Metformin (RR: 0.66, 95% CI 0.35 to 1.23, p = 0.19), reduced amenorrhoea for Camellia sinensis compared to placebo (RR: 0.17, 95% CI 0.02 to 1.72, p = 0.13) and no difference in the number of menses per month for Cinnamomum sp. against placebo (MD 0.05, 95% CI -0.36 to 1.36, p = 0.26).Adverse effects were investigated in seven studies (164 women). Mild adverse effects were found for Cinnamomum sp. compared to placebo (17 women, RR: 0.36, 95% CI 0.03 to 0.70, p = 0.03). No difference was found for adverse effects between inositol, B complex vitamins, vitamin D, chromium and placebo. Improved reproduction, metabolic hormones and hyperandrogenism was found for inositol and improved cholesterol for omega three fish oils.ConclusionThere is no high quality evidence to support the effectiveness of nutritional supplements and herbal medicine for women with PCOS and evidence of safety is lacking. High quality trials of nutritional supplements and herbal medicines examining menstrual regulation and adverse effects in women with PCOS are needed.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017