Effect of extracts from indigowood root (Isatis indigotica fort.) on immune responses in radiation-induced mucositis
You WC et al. – Study demonstrates that indigowood root (IR) has anti-inflammatory ability to reduce the mucosal damage caused by radiation; indirubin may play a pharmaceutical role in improvement of radiation mucositis, anorexia, and difficulty in swallowing. Methods- An evaluation of the effect of indigowood root on acute mucositis induced by radiation in pts with head and neck cancer receiving radiotherapy
- Objective severity of mucositis, anorexia, and swallowing difficulty were measured before and after the treatment
- 20 pts were randomized into 2 groups:
- Group 1: served as controls with only normal saline, and
- Group 2: as the indigowood root (IR) group
- Prophylactic application of IR consisted of gargling and then swallowing the IR preparation on the irradiated oral mucosa
- Pts' characteristic distribution of gender, age, diagnosis, and mean radiation dose between the 2 arms were calculated
- Mean of grade 1-4 mucositis, anorexia, difficulty in swallowing, and body weight change were compared
Results- Application of IR reduced the severity of radiation mucositis, anorexia, and swallowing difficulty
- Although pts' resting days did not show a significant difference complete radiotherapy was done w/o rest for 4/11 pts in the IR group vs 2/9 in controls
- Hemoglobin level between both groups showed no significant difference
- Serum IL-6 was significantly lower in the IR group during the first, fifth, and seventh wks
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