Российское сообщество больных Гепатитом С
 

4.0.7 TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE (TCM)

We feel it important to caution the reader about Chinese medicines. We know many persons who have found TCM to be very helpful, but there have been many instances of unscrupulous preparation of Chinese medicinal compounds, where herbs and substances other than those indicated were used in the preparation. In some cases this has led to death. Please seek out a reputable practitioner.

The following is from (“Complementary and alternative medicine in chronic liver disease,” Hepatology September 2001 Volume 34 Number 3)

TCM has been practiced for roughly 2 millennia, with comprehensive records of Chinese medical theories dating back to 221 BC. CTM comprises multiple forms of ritualistic healing practices. These include the relatively well-known practices of acupuncture and herbal therapy and the lesser-known moxibustion (dermal counterirritation therapy), massage, and exercise therapy (Qi Gong). Chinese herbal therapy comprises over 100,000 recorded treatments, roughly 80% being combination or herbal mixtures. Most herbal mixtures comprise 4 to 5 herbs with 1 to 2 major pharmacologically active compounds (King herb), the remaining herbs playing a “helper function,” such as reducing toxicity, promoting delivery to the target site, or working synergistically with the “King.”

Regarding chronic liver disease, a limited number of mixtures (approximately 76) have been identified by screening a Traditional Oriental Medicine Database (Tradi/Med DB). A hepatoprotective extract with the highest potency and the lowest toxicity is the Plantago asiatica seed, the active component being aucubin. Aucubin appears to inhibit hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication in vitro and in animals (100 mg/kg daily for 1 month). Its use in a human trial, 10 mg/kg administered intravenously for 4 weeks, led to a 10% to 40% decrease in serum HBV-DNA levels that returned to pretreatment values after stopping therapy.

A second combination of 10 herbs, termed “Herbal Medicine 861 (HM861),” was tested for antifibrotic activity in 3 controlled clinical trials encompassing 107 patients with hepatitis B. ALT levels fell into the normal range in 73% of patients, while spleen size, portal pressure, and serum procollagen peptide and laminin levels decreased in 53%. Liver biopsies, 6 months posttreatment, showed reductions in fibrosis and inflammatory infiltrates and quantitative decreases in tissue hydroxyproline. All patients remained hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) positive. In vitro studies using human stellate cells and in vivo studies using animal models of fibrosis (CCl4 and albumin induced) showed that HM861 inhibited stellate cell activation by blocking cyclin/cyclin-dependent kinase activity in the cell cycle, and that fibrotic tissues were remodeled, with revascularization of liver sinusoids. Transforming growth factor and collagen type I, III, and IV gene transcripts were reduced while matrix metalloproteinase I was increased, suggesting a reversal of early stages of cirrhosis through the correction of imbalance in the dynamics of synthesis and degradation of the extracellular matrix.

CH-100 is a formulation of 19 different herbs developed for treatment of liver disease. In a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving patients with hepatitis C, treatment with the product was associated with a significant reduction in ALT levels, although no treated person cleared the virus. NCCAM is currently supporting a study of a 10-herb combination, referred to as 3AR. The trial will assess safety and adverse events, as well as symptoms of fatigue, quality of life, liver function, and HCV-RNA levels in patients who do not qualify for standard therapy of hepatitis C. Thus, there is increasing interest in conducting rigorous testing of candidate CTM compounds (1) as alternatives to standard treatment, (2) to augment conventional treatments, or (3) to ameliorate the side effects of current therapies.

A very good overview of TCM and HCV can be found in Matt Dolan’s book, The Hepatitis C Handbook



Реклама:



Реклама:

Яндекс цитирования

Сайт управляется системой uCoz