Integrative Medicine

A new study in the journal Phytotherapy Research suggests that willow bark extract may provide relief from the pain associated with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee and hip. In the current study, German researchers randomly assigned 78 men and women with knee or hip OA to receive either willow bark extract or placebo for 2 weeks. After 2 weeks of treatment, participants in the willow bark group experienced a 14 percent reduction in pain while participants in the placebo group experienced a 2 percent increase in pain. "This study shows that willow bark extract, in the composition and dose used in our trial, was [effective] as a [pain reliever] in the treatment of OA of the knee and the hip," the researchers conclude.

References

Schmid B, Ludtke R, Selbmann K-K, et al. Efficacy and tolerability of a standardized willow bark extract in patients with osteoarthritis: randomized placebo-controlled, double blind clinical trial. Phytother Res. 2001;15:344-350.