Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35534429›Full record

ArticleJournal of menopausal medicine2022

The Efficacy of Herbal Supplement

Eliza L Y Wong, Annie W L Cheung, C J Haines, C C Wang, Chun-Kwok Wong, Karl W K Tsim, William K F Cheng, Ping-Chung Leung

Open access · diamondAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of menopausal medicine, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
0.3field-weighted citation impact, top 45% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 2 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026
    Review
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.

Eliza L Y WongThe Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Annie W L CheungThe Jockey Club School of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
C J HainesDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
C C WangDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Chun-Kwok WongDepartment of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Karl W K TsimDivision of Life Science and Center for Chinese Medicine, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong.
William K F ChengInstitute of Chinese Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Ping-Chung LeungInstitute of Chinese Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0195-4688
Chinese University of Hong Kong · HKHong Kong University of Science and Technology · HK

Funding

State Key Laboratory Fund
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectivesThis study aimed to further explore the efficacy and safety of

methodsA third clinical trial to determine the clinical efficacy of high-dose DBT for a period of 12 weeks was carried out. The standard Menopause-Specific Quality of Life (MENQOL) assessment chart was used for the evaluation. Safety was defined as an absence of direct estrogenic effects, serum inflammatory cytokines. Notably, interleukin IL-6, IL-8 and tumor necrosis factor TNF-α, known to be directly related to estrogenic reactions in menopause studies, were monitored.

resultsThe third clinical trial indicated an overall improvement in the four domains of MENQOL, offering further proof of the efficacy of DBT demonstrated in the two previous trials. The serial checks of the three cytokines related to estrogen activities did not show either upward or downward trends. The haphazard behavior reactions of the three cytokines offered indirect indications that DBT improved the MENQOL independently from estrogen activities.

conclusionsThe three clinical trials using DBT to relieve menopausal syndrome have offered solid evidence for its efficacy. The uncertainty regarding whether the "phytoestrogen" contained in DBT had bioactivities similar to estrogen was alleviated through the confirmation that no strict estrogenic bioactivities were observed. The issue of safety was further clarified via laboratory platform studies on DBT, which not only showed the lack of similarity with estrogen actions but also confirmed the value of combining the two herbs in the classic formula.

Indexed as

Estrogen activityHerbal supplementMenopause

Identifiers

PMID35534429
PMCPMC9086341
OpenAlexW4226551621

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.