Title:Herbal Medicine for Vascular Dementia: An Overview of Systematic Reviews
Volume: 18
Issue: 4
Author(s): Tae-Hun Kim and Jung Won Kang*
Affiliation:
- Department of Acupuncture & Moxibustion, College of Korean Medicine, Kyung Hee University, #23 Kyungheedae-ro, Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul 130-872,South Korea
Keywords:
Herbal medications, cerebrovascular dysfunction, systematic reviews, vascular dementia, aging, cognitive decline.
Abstract:
Introduction: Vascular dementia (VaD), a severe neurologic condition related to aging of the
cerebrovascular structure, has been treated with herbal medications and products. In this overview of
systematic reviews (SRs) on the effects of herbal medications, we aimed to summarize the current clinical
evidence on the benefits of herbal drugs and to propose an evidence map outlining their effects on
VaD.
Methods: SRs assessing their effects on cognitive function or performance and the associated safety,
published until December 2018, were located from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane Database of Systematic
Reviews, Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, China National Knowledge Infrastructure,
and Oriental Medicine Advanced Searching Integrated System. A Measurement Tool to Assess systematic
Reviews 2 was used to assess their overall confidence. A bubble plot was proposed to present the
depth and width of the current status of the evidence supporting the use of individual herbal drugs.
Results: Ten SRs (4 on individual herbal medications and 6 on various herbal drugs) were included. The
overall evidence on herbal medicines suggests that they are effective in improving cognitive function
and performance. Individual herbal medications including FuFangHaiShe, NaoXinTong, YinDanXing-
NaoTong, NaoMaiTai, ShenFuTang, and TongXinLuo showed favourable effects when assessed via a
minimal mental state examination score but have limited evidence supporting their effectiveness due to
the scarcity of randomized controlled trials. Concerning safety, most SRs did not outline the estimated
risk ratio of adverse events.
Conclusion: Herbal medications might have benefits for VaD patients but they need to be evaluated
further.