Efficacy of Kampo Medicine in Treating Atopic Dermatitis: An Overview

Abstract

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common inflammatory skin disease with recurring episodes of itching and a chronic relapsing course. Current treatment options for AD include topical agents, such as topical corticosteroids and oral antiallergic drugs. Providing effective long-term treatment is sometimes difficult due to the chronic, relapsing nature of AD; therefore, there is a need to identify better therapeutic options with minimal side effects that are well tolerated over the variable course of the disease. Traditional herbal medicine, also known as Kampo medicine in Japan, has a long history and plays a role in the prevention and treatment of various diseases, including AD. Some Kampo medicines are useful for treating inflammatory skin diseases, and there has been increased interest in using Kampo medicine to develop new therapeutic agents for AD. Standard Kampo formulas for AD are effective in removing the symptoms of “Netsu Sho,” “Ketsu-Kyo,” “Ki-Kyo,” and “O-Ketsu.” This paper discusses the efficacy of Kampo medicines in treating AD. Knowledge of the mechanisms of action of Kampo medicines will result in greater choices of pharmacotherapeutic agents for AD.

Clinical Search for Undiagnosed Mesenteric Phlebosclerosis at Outpatient Departments Specializing in Herbal (Kampo) Medicine

“…Herbal medicines containing gardenia fruit, such as Kamisyoyosan, are used for menstrual irregularity, hot flashes, and perimenopausal symptoms (16,17). They are also used for dermatological disorders like cutaneous pruritus (18,19). Unseiin, a traditional medicine, is prescribed for pruritic cutaneous diseases as well as menoxenia and hot flashes, symptoms often associ-ated with menopausal disorders.…”

Is the alternative medicine a real alternative in adult atopic dermatitis? Experiences of 125 patients

“…Japanese herb Kampo drugs (Shiunko) has a long history in treatment of some inflammatory diseases. It may have antibacterial effects on Staphylococci, and so may be an effective treatment for AD [36]. Uehara et al [37] suggest that the benefical effects of the oolong tea in adult AD may be the result of the antiallergic properties of tea polyphenols.…”

Functionalized Textile Based Therapy for the Treatment of Atopic Dermatitis

“…Huangbai Zicao Diyu cream Cortex phellodendri 50 g; Radix arnebiae 50 g; Radix sanguisorbae 100 g [81] Huanglian Qingdai ointment Rhizoma coptidis 0.6 g; Indigo naturalis 0.3 g; Cortex phellodendri 0.3 g; Alum 0.3 g; Borneolum syntheticum; Urea cream 40 g [81] Xiao-Feng-San (XFS) Radix saposhnikovia 2.5 mg; Herba schizonepetae 2.5 mg; Radix angelicae sinensis 2.5 mg; Radix rehmanniae 2.5 mg; Radix sophorae flavescentis 2.5 mg; Rhizoma atractylodis 2.5 mg; Periostracum cicdae 2.5 mg; Linum usitatissimum 2.5 mg; Rhizoma anemarrhenae 2.5 mg; Gypsum fibrosum 2.5 mg; Caulis clematidis armandii 1.25 mg; Radix glycyrrhizae 1.25 mg; Fructus arctii 2.5 mg [81,82] TCHM capsules Flos lonicerae 2 g; Herba menthae 1 g; Cortex moutan 2 g; Rhizoma atractylodis 2 g; Cortex phellodendri 2 g [83,84] Byakkokaninjinto Gypsum fibrosum; Anemarrhenae rhizome; Glycyrrhizae radix; Ginseng radix; Oryzae fructus [85,86] Juzen-Taiho-to Astragali Radix; Cinnamomi Cortex, Rehmanniae Radix; Paeoniae Radix; Cnidii Rhizoma; Atractylodis Lanceae Rhizoma; Angelicae Radix; Ginseng Radix; Hoelen; Glycyrrhizae Radix [85,87] Keishibukuryogan Cinnamomi cortex; Paeoniae Radix; Moutan cortex; Persicae semen; Hoelen [85,88] Gami-Cheongyeul-Sodok-Eum Angelica gigas; Astragalus membranaceus; Atractylodes japonica; Coptis japonica; Forsythia virdissima; Glycyrrhiza uralensis; Lonicera japonica; Portulaca oleracea; Scutellaria baicalensis [89] In clinical practice, Hui and coworkers recently developed a textile therapy functionalized with TCM for AD treatment using microencapsulation technology [90,91]. The fabrication strategy was an emulsion chemical crosslinking method (Figure 3A), by which the herbal medicines (PentaHerbs formula and cortex moutan) were successfully loaded into chitosan and sodium alginate composite microcapsules.…”