Giese L A
Gastroenterol Nurs. 2001 Mar-Apr;24(2):95-7. doi: 10.1097/00001610-200103000-00011.
Gastroenterology nurses and associates will find it helpful to be informed about milk thistle (silybum marianum), a popular, safe and promising herb used by patients with liver disease. Silymarin is a derivative from the milk thistle plant with few side effects that has been safely used for centuries to treat liver ailments. Since the 1970s, there has been a reemergence of the marketing and use of silymarin. Research results of some small studies suggest silymarin has hepatoprotective, antiinflammatory, and regenerative properties producing a beneficial effect for some types of hepatitis. It is unclear, however, whether silymarin might interfere with the effect of interferon or ribavirin. A well-designed, placebo-controlled study of a larger population is needed. It is certainly encouraging that a large collaborative study is currently underway for milk thistle therapy in hepatitis C. This study is funded by NCCAM, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). Research updates are available online at www.nccam.nih.gov and through the NCCAM Clearinghouse at 1-888-644-6226.
消化内科护士及相关人员若能了解水飞蓟（水飞蓟属植物），将会有所帮助。水飞蓟是一种受肝病患者欢迎、安全且有前景的草药。水飞蓟宾是从水飞蓟植物中提取的衍生物，副作用较少，几个世纪以来一直被安全地用于治疗肝脏疾病。自20世纪70年代以来，水飞蓟宾的销售和使用再度兴起。一些小型研究的结果表明，水飞蓟宾具有肝脏保护、抗炎和再生特性，对某些类型的肝炎产生有益效果。然而，尚不清楚水飞蓟宾是否会干扰干扰素或利巴韦林的疗效。需要开展一项针对更大规模人群的精心设计的安慰剂对照研究。目前正在进行一项关于水飞蓟治疗丙型肝炎的大型合作研究，这无疑令人鼓舞。该研究由美国国立补充与替代医学中心（NCCAM）、美国国立过敏与传染病研究所（NIAID）以及美国国立糖尿病、消化和肾脏疾病研究所（NIDDK）资助。研究最新进展可在www.nccam.nih.gov网站在线获取，也可通过拨打1-888-644-6226联系NCCAM信息中心查询。
