Effectiveness of Chinese Herbal Therapy for Asthma - Full Text View

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of an anti-asthma herbal medicine intervention (ASHMI) in adult asthmatics

Condition	Intervention	Phase
Asthma	Drug: ASHMI Drug: Placebo	Phase 2


Study Type:	Interventional
Study Design:	Allocation: Randomized Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment Masking: Quadruple (Participant, Care Provider, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor) Primary Purpose: Treatment
Official Title:	Center for Chinese Herbal Therapy for Asthma. Project #2-Clinical Effect of a Chinese Herbal Therapy in Human Asthma-Phase II

Resource links provided by NLM:

MedlinePlus related topics: Herbal Medicine

U.S. FDA Resources

Further study details as provided by Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai:

Primary Outcome Measures:

Number of patients whose asthma medication regimen (Inhaled corticosteroids) can be stepped down at least two levels [ Time Frame: 28 weeks ]

Secondary Outcome Measures:

Pulmonary function tests [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ]
Asthma symptoms [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ]
Asthma-related quality of life [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ]
Airway hyperreactivity [ Time Frame: 28 weeks ]
Acute asthma-related resource utilization [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ]
Immunologic markers [ Time Frame: 12 weeks ]


Estimated Enrollment:	50
Study Start Date:	August 2008
Estimated Study Completion Date:	July 2010
Estimated Primary Completion Date:	July 2010 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)

Arms	Assigned Interventions
Experimental: 1 ASHMI 6 capsules twice a day	Drug: ASHMI 6 capsules orally twice a day
Experimental: 2 ASHMI 2 capsules twice a day plus placebo 4 capsules twice a day	Drug: ASHMI 2 capsules orally twice a day
Placebo Comparator: 3 Placebo 6 capsules twice a day	Drug: Placebo Placebo 6 capsules twice a day

Detailed Description:

Asthma is a major public health problem worldwide, particularly in westernized societies and has continued to increase in prevalence over the past two decades. Inhaled corticosteroids have become the first-line treatment for persistent asthma even though side effects have been reported. New asthma medications, including leukotriene inhibitors and anti-IgE, have shown limited benefits. Patients have increasingly turned to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for treatment of their asthma, despite the uncertainty of its benefits due a lack of well-controlled scientific studies.

We have developed a Chinese herbal formula composed of 3 herbs called ASHMI. It has been previously shown in murine studies that ASHMI (a formula containing Ling Zhi, Ku Shen and Gan Cao) has therapeutic effects on the major pathogenic mechanisms of asthma-airway hyperreactivity, pulmonary inflammation, and airway remodeling, as well as a down-regulating of TH2 response. A subsequent study in 91 asthmatic patients in Weifang, China found ASHMI to be a safe and effective alternative to prednisone for treating asthma and exhibited a beneficial effect on TH1 and TH2 balance. Additionally, a Phase I study conducted in the United States showed good tolerability to ASHMI. Based on these preliminary studies, we hypothesize that ASHMI will be a safe medication in patients with asthma.

Eligibility


Ages Eligible for Study:	18 Years to 55 Years (Adult)
Sexes Eligible for Study:	All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:	No

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

Male and female subjects ages 18 through 55 and otherwise in good health as determined by medical history and physical examination
History of asthma documented by a physician for at least 6 months
Females of childbearing potential must be sexually inactive or take effective birth control measures, as deemed appropriate by the investigator, for the duration of the study
The subject agrees to participate in the study
Subjects must have one of the following:
one asthma-related unscheduled visit to an Emergency Department or clinic in the past 12 months
One overnight hospitalization in the past 12 months
Disturbed sleep more than twice in the past month
Asthma symptoms ≥8 times in the past month
use of a β2-agonist ≥8 times in the past month
two short courses (3-7 days) of oral corticosteroids in the last 12 months
FEV1 <80% predicted AND Use of inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) for at least 1 month prior to enrollment

Exclusion Criteria:

Acute illness (such as cold, flu, etc.) within two weeks before the screening visit
Any history of systemic disease that in the investigator's opinion would preclude the subject from participating in this study, including hepatitis virus infection
History of chronic obstructive lung disease, emphysema, or other chronic respiratory condition
Abnormal hepatic function (ALT/AST and bilirubin >1.25 x upper limit of normal)
Abnormal bone marrow function (WBC <4 x 103/mm3; platelets <100 x 103/mm3; Hgb <11 g/dl)
Abnormal renal function (BUN and creatinine >1.25 x upper limit of normal)
Clinically significant abnormal electrocardiogram
FEV1 <50% predicted
Participation in another experimental therapy study within 30 days of this study
History of alcohol or drug abuse
Pregnant or lactating female subjects. Females of childbearing potential will need a negative serum pregnancy test at screening to be considered for this study
Subjects receiving treatment with Omalizumab or immunotherapy for asthma

Contacts and Locations

Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Talk with your doctor and family members or friends about deciding to join a study. To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the Contacts provided below. For general information, see Learn About Clinical Studies.

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT00712296

Locations


United States, New York
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York, New York, United States, 10029

Sponsors and Collaborators

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Investigators


Principal Investigator:	Juan P Wisnivesky, MD, MPH	Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

More Information

Publications:

Wen MC, Wei CH, Hu ZQ, Srivastava K, Ko J, Xi ST, Mu DZ, Du JB, Li GH, Wallenstein S, Sampson H, Kattan M, Li XM. Efficacy and tolerability of anti-asthma herbal medicine intervention in adult patients with moderate-severe allergic asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2005 Sep;116(3):517-24.


Responsible Party:	Xiu-Min Li, MD, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:	NCT00712296 History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers:	P01 AT002647-2 P01AT002647-02 ( U.S. NIH Grant/Contract ) 5P01AT002647-02 ( U.S. NIH Grant/Contract )
Study First Received:	July 7, 2008
Last Updated:	December 29, 2009

Keywords provided by Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai:


Asthma alternative medicine complementary medicine herbal therapy

Additional relevant MeSH terms:


Asthma Bronchial Diseases Respiratory Tract Diseases Lung Diseases, Obstructive Lung Diseases	Respiratory Hypersensitivity Hypersensitivity, Immediate Hypersensitivity Immune System Diseases

ClinicalTrials.gov processed this record on August 22, 2017