Lower Urinary Tract Infection

Efficacy of Alternative and Other Treatments According to GRADE* Ranking:

Vitamin A [1, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help in preventing some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present. Please note, this acts as a PREVENTATIVE treatment, and not necessarily symptomatic relief.

Recommendation: Strongly in favor (Vitamin A may help to prevent urinary tract infections due to its role in the body's immune function)

Grade of Evidence: high quality of evidence

Gotu Kola (Centella Asiatica, Hydrocotyle Asiatica) [1, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: no recommendation (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that Gotu Kola helps in the treatment of Lower Urinary Tract Infections in any way. More research is needed.)

Grade of Evidence: low quality of evidence

Goldenseal (Hydrastis Canadensis) [1, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: Weakly against (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that Goldenseal helps to treat Urinary Tract Infections. More studies are needed. Goldenseal may produce toxic effects, including depression, constipation, rapid heartbeat, stomach pain, mouth ulcers and vomiting.)

Grade of Evidence: low quality of evidence

Echinacea Purpurea [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: no recommendation  (Evidence has shown that Echinacea has no effect in the treatment or prevention of urinary tract infections)

Grade of Evidence: moderate quality of evidence

* www.gradeworkinggroup.org

Summary References

Treatments:

1. Ades T, Alteri R, Gansler T, Yeargin P, "Complete Guide to Complimentary & Alternative Cancer Therapies", American Cancer Society, Atlanta USA, 2009

2. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/echinacea

3. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/echinacea/ataglance.htm

4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16049208

5. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/29145.php

6. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/goldenseal

7. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/goldenseal/

8. Tierra Michael (1998): The Way of Herbs. New York, Pocket Books

9. Grieve M. (1971): A Modern Herbal. New York, Dover Publications, Inc

10. Mills S. and Bone K. (2000): Principles and Practice of Phytotherapy. Philadelphia, Churchill Livingstone

11. Tice Raymond (1997): Goldenseal and Two of its constituent alkaloids: berberine and hydrastine Research Triangle Park, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, in Seiger E: Review of Toxilogical Literature

12. http://www.henriettesherbal.com/eclectic/ellingwood/hydrastis.html

13. Winston, D., Maimes, S., Adaptogens: Herbs For Strength, Stamina, and Stress Relief, 2007, pp. 226-7

14. "A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study on the Effects of Gotu Kola (Centella asiatica) on Acoustic Startle Response in Healthy Subjects". Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology. 20(6):680-684, December 2000. Bradwejn, Jacques MD, FRCPC *; Zhou, Yueping MD, PhD ++; Koszycki, Diana PhD *; Shlik, Jakov MD, PhD

15.  B. M. Hausen (1993) "Centella asiatica (Indian pennywort), an effective therapeutic but a weak sensitizer." Contact Dermatitis 29 (4), 175–179 doi:10.1111/j.1600-0536.1993.tb03532.x

16. Cataldo, A., Gasbarro, V., et al., "Effectiveness of the Combination of Alpha Tocopherol, Rutin, Melilotus, and Centella asiatica in The Treatment of Patients With Chronic Venous Insufficiency", Minerva Cardioangiology, 2001, Apr; 49(2):159-63

17. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotu_kola#Medicinal_effects

18. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/gotu-kola

19. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-vitamina.html

20. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vitamina.html

21. http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamina.asp

22. http://www.who.int/nutrition/topics/vad/en/

23. Latham, Michael E. (1997). Human Nutrition in the Developing World (Fao Food and Nutrition Paper). Food & Agriculture Organization of the United. ISBN 92-5-103818-X.

24. Sommer, Alfred (1995). Vitamin a Deficiency and Its Consequences: A Field Guide to Detection and Control. Geneva: World Health Organization. ISBN 92-4-154478-3.

25. http://www.unicef.org/worldfitforchildren/files/A-RES-S27-2E.pdf