Table 1.
Summary of randomized clinical trials of ginseng for menopause symptoms compared with placebo control
| First author (yr) [ref] | Design | Sample size conditions | Age range (yr) | Intervention | Dose (mg/d) | Treatment duration (wk) | Main outcome measures | Main results | AEs | Author’s conclusion (quoted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||||||
| Oh (2010) [11] | Cross-over, DB | 32 Menopausal women who had not menstruated naturally for at least 1 yr | 40-60 | KRG | 300 | 8 | 1) Female Sexual Function Index 2) Global Assessment Questionnaire | 1) Total: NS; desire: NS; arousal: P=0.006; lubrication: NS; orgasm: NS; satisfaction: NS; pain: NS 2) P=0.046 | 12 AEs - Probable (vaginal bleeding, KRG: 2, once during KRG period) - No relation (10, not reported in detail) | ‘…an 8 wk intake of KRG is associated with improvement of female sexual function…’ |
| Kim (2009) [12] | Parallel, DB | 26 Postmenopausal women who had not menstruated for at least 6 months and had severe hot flashes | 45-55 | KRG | 900 | 8 | Hot flashes frequency | NS | None | ‘….both RG and placebo have remarkable effects on patients, but RG is not better than placebo’ |
| Kim (2012) [13] | Parallel, DB | 72 Postmenopausal women | 45-60 | KRG | 3,000 (including 60 mg ginsenosides | 12 | 1) Kupperman’s Index 2) MRS | 1) P=0.032 in favour of KRG 2) P=0.035 in favour of KRG | Not assessed | ‘RG could be … relieving menopausal symptoms…’ |
| Wiklund (1999) [14] | Parallel, DB | 384 Postmenopausal women who had not menstruated for at least 6 months and had hot flashes in at least 3 of the previous 7 d | 45-65 | Ginseng (Ginsana) | 200 (effective compound: G115) | 16 | 1) Women’s Health Questionnaire 2) Psychological General Well- Being Index | 1) NS 2) Total: NS; anxiety: NS; depression: P=0.04; well-being: P=0.05; Self-control: NS; health: P=0.03; vitality: NS | 1811) women reported but no significant difference between two groups - Severe (G: 7; C: 9) - Probable (G: 1; C: 4) - Possible AE (G:7; C:10) - Unknown (G:36; C:42) - No relation (G:80; C: 77) Influenza or cold (45); headache and migraine (18); diarrhoea and gastrointestinal (40) | ‘…ginseng extract may offer effective relief in QoL- related aspects…’ |
DB, double blind; NS, not significant; P, probability; AE, adverse event; KRG, Korean red ginseng; MRS, menopausal rating scale; RG, red ginseng; G, ginseng; C, control; QoL, quality of life.
1) Original author reported 181 participants reported adverse events. However, this figure can be wrong because the sum of the number in ginseng group is 131.