Aloe vera: a systematic review of its clinical effectiveness.
BACKGROUND
The use of aloe vera is being promoted for a large variety of conditions. Often general practitioners seem to know less than their patients about its alleged benefits.


OBJECTIVE
To define the clinical effectiveness of aloe vera, a popular herbal remedy in the United Kingdom.


METHODS
Four independent literature searches were conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Biosis, and the Cochrane Library. Only controlled clinical trials (on any indication) were included. There were no restrictions on the language of publication. All trials were read by both authors and data were extracted in a standardized, pre-defined manner.


RESULTS
Ten studies were located. They suggest that oral administration of aloe vera might be a useful adjunct for lowering blood glucose in diabetic patients as well as for reducing blood lipid levels in patients with hyperlipidaemia. Topical application of aloe vera is not an effective preventative for radiation-induced injuries. It might be effective for genital herpes and psoriasis. Whether it promotes wound healing is unclear. There are major caveats associated with all of these statements.


CONCLUSIONS
Even though there are some promising results, clinical effectiveness of oral or topical aloe vera is not sufficiently defined at present.
Vogler
B K
BK
Department of Complementary Medicine, School of Postgraduate Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Exeter.
Ernst
E
E
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000287:Administration, Topical; D000504:Aloe / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D000529:Complementary Therapies; D018849:Controlled Clinical Trials as Topic; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000188:drug therapy; D005260:Female; D006558:Herpes Genitalis / Q000188:drug therapy; D006801:Humans; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000188:drug therapy; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010946:Plants, Medicinal; D011565:Psoriasis / Q000188:drug therapy
D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents