title: A double-blind, placebo-controlled evaluation of the anxiolytic efficacy ff an ethanolic extract of withania somnifera.
abstract: A double-blind, placebo-controlled study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy an ethanolic extract of Aswagandha (Withania somnifera), in patients with ICD-10 anxiety disorders. The sample comprised 39 subjects, of whom 20 received the drug and 19 received placebo. The two groups were sociodemographically and clinically similar at baseline. At 2 and 6 weeks follow-up, data from approximately 85% of patients in each group were available for analysis. Statistical trends favouring the drug were observed at both time points. At 6 weeks, significantly more patients met a priori response criteria in the drug group (88.2%) as compared with the placebo group (50%). The drug was well-tolerated and did not occasion more adverse effects than did placebo. It is concluded that this ethanolic extract of Withania somnifera has useful anxiolytic potential and merits further investigation.
authors.affiliation: CHITTARANJAN ANDRADE, MD., Additional Professor & Head, Department of Psychopharmacology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bangalore-560 029.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aswath
authors.forename: S K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Chaturvedi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Srinivasa
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Raguram