Tier 3 — preclinical

Herbal therapy is equivalent to rifaximin for the treatment of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth

Chedid V, Dhalla S, Clarke JO, Roland BC, Dunbar KB, Koh J, Justino E, Tomakin E, Mullin GE
Global advances in health and medicine 2014 3:16-24

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 24891990
PubMed Central
PMC4030608
DOI
10.7453/gahmj.2014.019
Funding
Not specified as a separate funding statement in the accessible report
Competing interests
The authors reported no conflicts on the ICMJE disclosure form.

Study snapshot

DesignRetrospective observational comparison of patient-selected treatments
ModelHuman patients
Sample104 patients with follow-up testing; 37 herbal and 67 rifaximin
InterventionMulticomponent herbal regimens or rifaximin 1200 mg/day
Duration4 weeks
EndpointsNegative follow-up lactulose breath test; Treatment-associated adverse events

What the study showed, in plain terms

Negative follow-up lactulose breath test in 17/37 herbal users and 23/67 rifaximin users; between-group difference was not statistically significant.

Key findings

Negative follow-up lactulose breath test in 17/37 herbal users and 23/67 rifaximin users; between-group difference was not statistically significant.

What this study can and cannot tell us

No random allocation; self-selection and substantial follow-up exclusions. A non-significant difference does not establish equivalence, and the herbal formulas do not isolate berberine.

Citation network

Articles citing this research paper

2 articles

Biohack Blueprint analyses that reference this study in their evidence base.

Editorial review

Reviewed by the Biohack Blueprint research team

Last verified

Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology