Snakehead Consumption Enhances Wound Healing? From Tradition to Modern Clinical Practice: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Background Snakehead fish (Channa striatus) is a fresh water fish indigenous to many Asia countries and believed to have medical value. Studies showed that it contains all the essential amino acids and fatty acids able to accelerate wound healing and it has antinociceptive effect. However, little human study has been done to assess the effectiveness of Channa striatus in wound healing. A prospective RCT has been conducted on the effect of Channa striatus spray versus placebo on clean wound to assess its pain control effect and cosmetic outcome. Methodology One hundred and two patients (102) underwent clean elective surgery; postoperatively they were randomized into two group. One group received Channa striatus extract spray (n=51) another group received placebo (n=51) on daily basis for 2 weeks. They were followed up on 2nd, 4th, and 6th weeks. Pain control effect was assessed based on Visual Analog Pain Score (VAPS) and cosmetic outcome based on Visual Analog Cosmetic Scale (VACS), Wound Evaluation Scale (WES), and Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS). Result The patient treated with Channa striatus spray displayed a better outcome in terms of pain control compared to placebo. During analysis using repeated measure ANOVA, there was significant difference of patient's pain score based on VAPS between Channa striatus spray and placebo (F-stat (df) = 4.80 (2), p-value = 0.010). For cosmetic outcome it showed a better result in Channa striatus spray group for all the 3-scoring system, VACS, (F-stat (df) = 2.68 (2) , p-value <0.001), WES (F-stat (df) = 3.09 (2), p-value = 0.048), and VSS (F-stat (df) = 1.72 (2) , p-value = 0.011). Conclusion Our study suggest that application of Channa striatus extract spray on clean wound has shown a significant better pain score result and cosmetic outcome on week 2, week 4, and week 6 comparatively with placebo.

Identification of novel antioxidant peptides from snakehead (Channa argus) soup generated during gastrointestinal digestion and insights into the anti-oxidation mechanisms

“…Due to its high levels of essential amino acids and fatty acids, snakeheads are usually used as ingredients in soup, a popular side dish in Asia-Pacific countries (Sahid et al, 2018;Zhang, Zheng, Feng, Shen, Xiong, & Du, 2018). Moreover, snakehead fish has been reported to significantly promote the healing of wounds and burns (Sahid et al, 2018).…”

Antibacterial and cytotoxic activity assessment of Channa striatus (Haruan) extract

“…Researchers believe that a possible factor that plays a role in these results is the part of C. striatus that was used in this study and its compound. The main compounds detected in this C. striatus fillet extract were amino acids (glycine, glutamic acid, arginine, and aspartic acid) and fatty acids (eicosapentaenoic acid, docosahexaenoic acid, palmitic acid, oleic acid, stearic acid, and arachidonic acid), which are important in influencing pain-sensing and wound healing [37][38][39].…”

The Effect of Ophiocephalus striatus sp. Extract on Nitric Oxide in Ischemic Stroke Model

“…Similar studies related to the method of stroke induction were carried out by occlusion of internal and external carotid arteries to determine the presence of ischemic stroke areas in brain tissue using the HE routine staining technique. The macroscopic test of the Sprague Dawley rat's brain tissue showed that the rats successfully experienced an ischemic stroke [13].…”