Tan Mingshuai, Li Qiang, Yang Bencheng, Wang Sihan, Chen Ze
Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 610075, P. R. China.
Department of Orthopedic Medicine, Suining Municipal Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Suining 629000, P. R. China.
Am J Chin Med. 2024;52(5):1303-1328. doi: 10.1142/S0192415X24500526. Epub 2024 Aug 28.
Osteoporosis is the most common bone metabolic disease, and it is becoming increasingly common as the global population ages. Osteoporosis and its complications, such as fractures and pain, negatively affect patient quality of life and easily lead to disability, placing enormous burdens on society. Although several anti-osteoporosis drugs are currently available, many adverse reactions have been observed during the long-term application of these drugs. Therefore, safer and more useful medications are urgently needed to replace those currently available. Chinese herbal medicine has been extensively used to treat osteoporosis, and the current literature confirms that such medicines have anti-osteoporosis effects, are safe, and have minimal side effects. Thus, Chinese herbal medicines are natural alternatives to pharmaceutical approaches to treating osteoporosis, and these medicines must be further developed and utilized. In this article, we review the mechanisms underlying the anti-osteoporosis effects of single herbal extracts and traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formulas that have been elucidated since 2013, providing key evidence and support for future research on the anti-osteoporosis effects of Chinese herbal medicines. In addition, due to the complexity of the ingredients in Chinese herbal medicine, more thorough investigations are needed to determine the specific ingredients that are effective in osteoporosis treatment. Therefore, identifying the effective ingredients of Chinese herbal medicines will be a necessary focus in laboratory research and clinical application.
骨质疏松症是最常见的骨代谢疾病，且随着全球人口老龄化，其发病率正日益升高。骨质疏松症及其并发症，如骨折和疼痛，会对患者的生活质量产生负面影响，并容易导致残疾，给社会带来巨大负担。尽管目前有几种抗骨质疏松药物可用，但在长期使用这些药物的过程中观察到了许多不良反应。因此，迫切需要更安全、更有效的药物来取代现有的药物。中药已被广泛用于治疗骨质疏松症，目前的文献证实，这类药物具有抗骨质疏松作用，安全且副作用极小。因此，中药是治疗骨质疏松症药物方法的天然替代品，必须进一步开发和利用。在本文中，我们回顾了自2013年以来已阐明的单一草药提取物和中药配方抗骨质疏松作用的机制，为未来中药抗骨质疏松作用的研究提供关键证据和支持。此外，由于中药成分的复杂性，需要更深入的研究来确定在骨质疏松症治疗中有效的具体成分。因此，确定中药的有效成分将是实验室研究和临床应用中必要的重点。
