Nurses and complementary therapies.

Medical and surgical options for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia have expanded in recent years. Saw palmetto, the most widely used complementary medication, is less effective than standard medical therapy but has fewer side effects. Although non-selective alpha blockers provide rapid relief of symptoms and are relatively inexpensive, they can cause dizziness and orthostatic hypotension. These effects occur less often with tamsulosin, a more selective alpha blocker. Finasteride, a 5alpha-reductase inhibitor, slowly reduces prostatic volume but is not as effective as alpha blockers, especially in men with a smaller prostate. Dutasteride, a new 5alpha-reductase inhibitor, has recently been labeled for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Surgery may be appropriate initial treatment in patients with severe symptoms who are not at high risk for complications. Surgery may also be indicated in patients who have failed medical therapy or have recurrent infection, hematuria, or renal insufficiency. Transurethral resection of the prostate is effective in most patients, but it carries some risk of sexual dysfunction, incontinence, and bleeding. Surgical procedures that use thermal microwave or laser energy to reduce hyperplastic prostate tissue have recently become available. In general, the newer procedures are less expensive than transurethral resection of the prostate and have fewer complications; however, the need for retreatment is somewhat greater with these less invasive techniques.

Complementary Therapies↗

PubMed2002

Three different pathways for human LDL oxidation are inhibited in vitro by water extracts of the medicinal herb Achyrocline satureoides.

In this study we investigated the antioxidant properties of one herbal preparation widely used in complementary and alternative medicine in large areas of the world: Achyrocline satureoides (AS), popularly known as "marcela". Although rich in flavonoids, the ethnopharmacological uses of this plant do not include atherosclerosis prevention. Furthermore, no study had been conducted so far exploring the antioxidant activity of Achyrocline satureoides vis-à-vis human LDL oxidation, which is the compelling issue in pinpointing potential cardioprotective new uses for a traditional remedy. We explored the effects of AS extracts on human LDL oxidation, employing 3 different systems which are thought to play a role in oxidation of LDL in the arterial wall: copper, peroxynitrite, and lipoxygenase. Oxidation was monitored by conjugate dienes, TBARS formation and aggregation of apoB using SDS-PAGE. In copper-initiated oxidation a dose dependent inhibition of the initiation and propagation of lipid oxidation is shown by an increase in the lag phase for conjugate diene production which was 60 +/- 15 min in the absence and 120 +/- 20 min in the presence of 4 microg/ml AS extracts (p < 0.001). TBARS production was reduced by 95% after 3 h incubation at 5 microg/ml. Aggregation of apoB was abolished at the same concentrations. SIN-1 (3-morpholinosydnonimine) produces peroxynitrite via generation of NO and O2-. When LDL was incubated in its presence, a milder oxidation was observed as compared with Cu2+, and AS produced over 70% inhibition. Finally, we show a striking dose-dependent inhibitory effect of lipoxygenase conjugate diene production, which is over 95% at AS concentrations of 5 microg/ml. When compared with other antioxidants, AS effect is greater but in the same order of magnitude than that of ascorbic acid and similar to the popular herbal tea Ilex paraguariensis. In all three systems employed an effect is already substantiated at a concentration of the AS extract of 4 microg/ml, which corresponds to a 1/100 dilution of the preparations usually drunk.

Complementary Therapies↗