title: A Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of STA-2 (Green Tea Polyphenols) in Patients with Chronic Stable Angina.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Green tea intake has been shown to improve endurance capacity in animal studies, but whether it has a similar effect on humans remains unclear. A randomized, double-blinded, parallel-controlled study was conducted to evaluate the short-term effect of STA-2, a pharmaceutical preparation of green tea polyphenols, in patients with effort-induced angina and documented positive exercise tolerance test.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 79 patients recruited from three medical centers were randomly assigned to receive 2 STA-2 250 mg capsules, each containing 100 mg green tea polyphenols, three times daily, or placebo for six weeks after two consecutive symptom-limited treadmill exercise tests to ascertain the reproducibility of exercise tolerance.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no difference in total exercise tolerance time from baseline to Week 6 between two groups (p = 0.639). There were also no observed improvements in subgroup analyses stratified by age, gender, and BMI categories. However, a significant reduction in low-density lipoprotein levels was shown in patients in the STA-2 group (-8.99 ± 19.18 mg/dL) versus the placebo group (0.57 ± 19.77 mg/dL), p = 0.037, with greater benefits in patients not taking antihyperlipidemic drugs (STA-2: -9.10 ± 19.96 mg/dL vs. placebo: 4.42 ± 15.08 mg/dL, p = 0.037).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  STA-2 treatment for 6 weeks did not increase exercise time as measured on a treadmill. However, this study also indicated that STA-2 treatment could have potential beneficial effects on LDL-cholesterol concentrations.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Section, Department of Medicine, Tainan Municipal An-Nan Hospital-China Medical University, Tainan; ; Department of Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung; ; Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Taipei Medical University;
authors.forename: Tsung-Ming
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Taipei Veterans General Hospital and National Yang-Ming University;
authors.forename: Min-Ji
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Charng
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Chuen-Den
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Ling-Ping
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Lai
keywords: Chronic stable angina; Coronary disease; Green tea polyphenols; Ischemia; Low density lipoprotein (LDL)