ScienceDaily (June 12, 2009)
— An extract of ginkgo biloba shows scientific evidence of effectiveness
against one common and hard-to-
treat type of pain, according to animal data reported in the June
issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia, official journal of the International
Anesthesia Research Society (IARS).
Dr. Yee Suk Kim and colleagues of The Catholic University of Seoul,
South Korea, performed experiments in rats to evaluate the
effectiveness of ginkgo against neuropathic pain, a common pain problem
associated with herpes zoster, limb injury, or diabetes. Affected
patients may feel severe pain in response to harmless stimuli
like heat, cold, or touch.
Objective Evidence of Pain Reduction with Ginkgo
In the experiments, rats with neuropathic pain were treated
with different doses of a standardized ginkgo biloba extract or with an inactive
solution. Objective tests were performed to see how ginkgo
affected neuropathic pain responses to cold and pressure.
For both cold and pressure stimuli, pain responses were
significantly reduced in ginkgo-treated rats. This was so on before-and- after
treatment comparisons and on comparison of ginkgo-treated versus
placebo-treated animals. The higher the dose of ginkgo extract, the
greater the pain-relieving effect. Pain was reduced for at
least two hours after ginkgo treatment.
The study provides no evidence as to how ginkgo works to reduce
pain. Several mechanisms are possible, including antioxidant activity, an
anti-inflammatory effect, or protection against nerve
injury—perhaps in combination.
Many herbs and "alternative" drugs are commonly used without
prescriptions for a wide range of purposes, despite a lack of scientific
evidence for health claims. Ginkgo, one of the most popular
herbal products, is widely used as a memory enhancer, among other purposes.
The new study provides the first scientific evidence that
ginkgo has a real effect in reducing neuropathic pain. New treatments
are needed
for neuropathic pain, which does not always respond well to
available treatments.
"It's still too early to stock up on ginkgo biloba if you have
chronic pain," comments Dr. Steven L. Shafer of Columbia University, Editor-in-
Chief of Anesthesia & Analgesia. Many treatments that are
effective in animals do not prove to be effective in humans, or prove to have
unacceptable toxic effects when given to patients, Dr.
Shafer reminds. "However," he adds, "it is at least reassuring to know that scientists
are investigating the properties of this ancient
oriental herbal medication in an effort to determine what chemical constituents account for the
many beneficial effects
traditionally ascribed to it."
Courtesy of
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