A pilot study of banxia houpu tang, a traditional Chinese medicine, for reducing pneumonia risk in older adults with dementia.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:

To evaluate whether the traditional Chinese herbal medicine banxia houpu tang (BHT, formula magnolia et pinelliae) prevents aspiration pneumonia and pneumonia-related mortality in elderly people.

DESIGN:

A prospective, observer-blinded, randomized, controlled trial.

SETTING:

Two long-term care hospitals for handicapped elderly patients in Japan from March 2005 to February 2006.

PARTICIPANTS:

One hundred four elderly patients (31 men and 73 women; mean age+/-standard deviation 83.5+/-7.8) with dementia and cerebrovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, or Parkinson's disease.

INTERVENTION:

Ninety-five participants (mean age 84.0, M:F=28:67) were randomly assigned to the BHT treatment group (n=47) or the control group (n=48) and took BHT or placebo for 12 months.

MEASUREMENTS:

The occurrence of pneumonia, mortality due to pneumonia, and the daily amount of self-feeding.

RESULTS:

Complete data were available for analysis on 92 of the 95 subjects randomized. Four patients in the BHT group developed pneumonia, and one of them died as a result. Fourteen patients in the control group developed pneumonia, and six of them died as a result. There was a significant difference between the two groups in pneumonia onset (P=.008), and a tendency toward significance in pneumonia-related mortality (P=.05). The relative risk of pneumonia in the BHT group compared with the control group was 0.51 (95% confidence interval (CI)=0.27-0.84, P=.008) and that of death from pneumonia was 0.41 (95% CI=0.10-1.03, P=.06) according to the Cox proportional hazards model. No adverse events were observed from treatment with BHT. The BHT group was able to maintain self-feeding better than the control group (P=.006).

CONCLUSION:

Treatment with BHT reduced the risk of pneumonia and pneumonia-related mortality in elderly patients with dementia.

• Authors: Koh Iwasaki, Shiro Kato, Yasutake Monma, Kaijun Niu, Takashi Ohrui, Reina Okitsu, Satoshi Higuchi, Shiro Ozaki, Noboru Kaneko, Takashi Seki, Katsutoshi Nakayama, Katsutoshi Furukawa, Masahiko Fujii, Hiroyuki Arai
• Journal: Journal of the American Geriatrics Society (J Am Geriatr Soc) Vol. 55 Issue 12 Pg. 2035-40 (Dec 2007) ISSN: 1532-5415 [Electronic] United States
• PMID: 17944889 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Banxia Houpo Tang
• Drugs, Chinese Herbal

Topics

• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Analysis of Variance
• Dementia (complications)
• Drugs, Chinese Herbal (pharmacology)
• Female
• Humans
• Japan (epidemiology)
• Male
• Pilot Projects
• Pneumonia (epidemiology, etiology, prevention & control)
• Proportional Hazards Models
• Prospective Studies
• Treatment Outcome