Thundergod vine

[Rosiesmummy]

Had anyone any experience of thundergod vine? I have been told it's good for pain relief in rheumatoid arthritis

[Ruffles13]

Never heard of that. If you do find out please post

[oldtimer]

arthritis.org/living-with-a...

I always have a look at a reliable source of information if I can. Anecdotes from individuals can be misleading - they may not be like me in the ways that matter.

[Simba1992]

Actually a bit of scientific evidence on the efficacy of this herb on RA. Seems that it is more effective than sulfa.... and compared with mtx about the same. Best results when taken together with mtx than separately . ( Chinese study 2014). However this herb has serious side effects and should not be taken without doctors supervision. Unfortunately so far very few studies. Chinese medicine have used for hundreds of years.

[Rosiesmummy in reply to Simba1992]

Thanks for that.I can find little scientific studies and the side effects are not nice.

[Simba1992 in reply to Rosiesmummy]

Interesting though that Chinese medicine use this herb a lot and also to replace steroids in treatment of RA because it does not affect the adrenal gland like longterm pred use. Could not find any research on comparing the adverse effects of RA meds and Thundergod vine, this would be interesting since the side effects of RA meds are not very nice eather😕

[Hidden]

Drugs.com offers information at the following link, but considering the contraindications I would be cautious - I haven't used it because it is a traditional Chinese herb and I haven't gotten into them as much yet other than Immortelle (Helichrysum). But it is on my learning list - ha ha Drugs.com says in part:

drugs.com/npp/thunder-god-v...

Scientific Name(s): Tripterygium wilfordii Hook. Family: Celastraceae

Common Name(s): Huang-t'eng ken ( yellow vine root ), lei-kung t'eng , lei gong teng (Chinese), thunder god vine , thunder of god vine , tsao-ho-hua ( early rice flower )

Uses

Thunder god vine has been evaluated for use primarily in rheumatoid arthritis (RA); however, its adverse event profile and limited quality trials restrict any recommendations for clinical use. Antifertility properties in men have been described, while amenorrhea was observed in women.

In RA trials, 60 mg/day of T2 (a chloroform-methanol extract of Tripterygium wilfordii ) for 12 weeks has been evaluated, as well as ethanol/ethyl alcohol root extract 180 to 360 mg/day. Several long-term studies have evaluated the use of 1 mg/kg/day of T2 for up to 5 years; however, adequate safety data during the same time period are limited.

Contraindications

Contraindications have not been determined. Due to immune suppression, thunder god vine preparations should not be used in immune-compromised patients.

[Rosiesmummy in reply to Hidden]

Thank You Cheryl,that's exactly the information I needed.

[Simba1992]

Found some more facts on the Chinese study 2014. The patients taking tgv together with mtx had symptoms decreased 77% whereas the ones only on tgv 50% decrease and mtx 46% decrease. The dose of mtx was lower than in traditional use. The group only on mtx had more GI problems than the tgv group. Irregularities in menstrual cycle were seen more in tgv group.