title: Adjunctive Treatment with Rhodiola Crenulata in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease--A Randomized Placebo Controlled Double Blind Clinical Trial.
abstract: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a low grade systemic inflammatory disease characterized by dyspnea and exercise intolerance even under standard therapy. Rhodiola crenulata (RC) has been shown to exert anti-inflammatory effects and to enhance exercise endurance, thereby having the potential to treat COPD. In this 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 57 patients with stable moderate-to-severe COPD aged 70±8.8 years were given RC (250 mg twice/day) (n=38) or a placebo (250 mg twice/day) (n=19) in addition to their standard regimen. There were no significant differences in anthropometrics, quality of life, lung function, six-minute walk and incremental exercise tests between the two groups at enrollment. Over the 12 weeks, RC was well tolerated, significantly reduced triceps skin thickness (Δ=-1 mm, p=.04), change of FEV1 (4.5%, p=.03), and improved workload (Δ=10%, p=.01); although there were no significant differences in these factors between the two groups. However, there were significant between-group differences in tidal volume and ventilation-CO2-output ratio at peak exercise (both p=.05), which were significantly related to peak work rate (both p<.0001). RC tended to protect against acute exacerbation of COPD (p=.1) but not other measurements. RC did not improve the six-minute walk test distance but significantly improved tidal breathing and ventilation efficiency, most likely through improvements in work rate. Further studies with a larger patient population are needed in order to confirm these findings.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  ClinicalTrials.gov number NCT02242461.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Department of Critical Care Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ming-Lung
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Chuang
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Department of Critical Care Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Tzu-Chin
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Department of Critical Care Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yau-Tung
authors.initials: YT
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Department of Critical Care Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yau-Chen
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Pulmonary Medicine and Department of Critical Care Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Thomas C-Y
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Tsao
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Chinese Medicine Clinical Trial Center, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan; Institute of Medicine, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; Graduate Institute of Integrated Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: James Cheng-Chung
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Chinese Medicine Clinical Trial Center, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chia-Yin
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Institute and Department of Public Health, National Yang Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: I-Feng
authors.initials: IF
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D017079:Exercise Tolerance / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D010919:Placebos; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000188:drug therapy*; D012123:Pulmonary Ventilation / Q000187:drug effects*; D011788:Quality of Life; D029771:Rhodiola / Q000378:metabolism*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013990:Tidal Volume / Q000187:drug effects; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D010919:Placebos; D010936:Plant Extracts