Plants as source of new therapies for endometriosis: a review of preclinical and clinical studies

AbstractBACKGROUNDGiven the disadvantages and limitations of current endometriosis therapy, there is a progressive increase in studies focusing on plant-derived agents as a natural treatment option with the intention of achieving high efficiency, avoiding adverse effects and preserving the chance for successful pregnancy. The heterogeneity of these studies in terms of evaluated agents, applied approaches and outcomes illustrates the need for an up-to-date summary and critical view on this rapidly growing field in endometriosis research.OBJECTIVE AND RATIONALEThis review provides a comprehensive overview of plant-derived agents and natural treatment strategies that are under preclinical or clinical investigation and critically evaluates their potential for future endometriosis therapy.SEARCH METHODSAn English language PubMed literature search was performed using variations of the terms ‘endometriosis’, ‘natural therapy’, ‘herb/herbal’, ‘plant’, ‘flavonoid’, ‘polyphenol’, ‘phytochemical’, ‘bioactive’, ‘Kampo’ and ‘Chinese medicine’. It included both animal and human studies. Moreover, the Clinicaltrials.gov database was searched with the term ‘endometriosis’ for clinical trials on plant-derived agents. No restriction was set for the publication date.OUTCOMESNatural therapies can be assigned to three categories: (i) herbal extracts, (ii) specific plant-derived bioactive compounds and (iii) Chinese herbal medicine (CHM). Agents of the f...
Source: Human Reproduction Update - Category: OBGYN Source Type: research