SynthesisDrug and alcohol review2025
Global Perspectives on Kava: A Narrative Systematic Review of the Health Effects, Economic and Social Impacts and Policy Considerations.
Synthesis in Drug and alcohol review, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Global Perspectives on Kava: A Narrative Systematic Review of the Health Effects, Economic and Social Impacts and Policy Considerations.Drug and alcohol review · 2025Pooled it
- Kava (Nutrients · 2026Review
- Article
- Kava Herb-Induced Liver Injury as Verified by the Updated RUCAM.Case reports in gastrointestinal medicine · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionKava is a plant-based drug central to many Pacific Island cultures, yet its physiological and psychological effects remain contested and poorly understood. Additionally, the broader social, economic, and policy consequences of kava trade and consumption are unclear. This paper systematically reviewed global literature on kava to clarify its role and potential impacts across these domains.
methodsWe conducted a systematic search of eight databases for records published between January 1980 and December 2022. Records on kava prevalence, social and cultural use, harms, benefits, economic impacts and policy reports were included. Data were narratively synthesised, combining qualitative and quantitative data extracted using a pre-designed template for each outcome, including a risk of bias evaluation.
resultsWe included 197 records across all domains. Most prevalence records used convenience samples in populations regularly consuming kava but with varying doses and periods. The harms and benefits of kava varied; its role in liver toxicity and anxiety reduction remains unclear. However, kava's social and cultural uses in recreational and traditional contexts and its economic importance in trade, distribution and sales across Pacific Islander countries were consistently reported. DISCUSSION AND
conclusionsKava holds social and cultural significance and is an essential trading commodity for Pacific Islander countries. Additional high-quality studies with larger samples are necessary to better inform policies and regulations around kava's usage, distribution, and its potential harms and benefits.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.