Passiflora for the treatment of anxiety disorders in adults

Miyasaka LS, Atallah ÁN, Soares B

Published Online:

January 21, 2009

Anxiety is a very common mental health problem in the general population. Passiflora, a herbal medicine, could be an option for treating anxiety if shown to be effective and safe. This review summarised the evidence from currently available studies on passiflora. Only two studies were eligible for inclusion, involving a total of 198 participants. One study showed that passiflora was as effective as benzodiazepines, with similar dropout rates between the two treatments. Given the lack of studies, it is not possible to draw any conclusions on the effectiveness or safety of passiflora in the treatment of anxiety disorders.

Abstract (click to read)

Background:

Anxiety is a very common mental health problem in the general population and in the primary care setting. Herbal medicines are popularly used worldwide and could be an option for treating anxiety if shown to be effective and safe. Passiflora (passionflower extract) is one of these compounds.

Objectives:

To investigate the effectiveness and safety of passiflora for treating any anxiety disorder.

Search strategy:

The following sources were used: electronic databases: Cochrane Collaboration Depression, Anxiety and Neurosis Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (CCDANCTR-Studies), Medline and Lilacs; Cross-checking references; contact with authors of included studies and manufacturers of passiflora.

Selection criteria:

Relevant randomised and quasi-randomised controlled trials of passiflora using any dose, regime, or method of administration for people with any primary diagnosis of general anxiety disorder, anxiety neurosis, chronic anxiety status or any other mental health disorder in which anxiety is a core symptom (panic disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, social phobia, agoraphobia, other types of phobia, postraumatic stress disorder). Effectiveness was measured using clinical outcome measures such as Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAM-A) and other scales for anxiety symptoms.

Data collection and analysis:

Two reviewers independently selected the trials found through the search strategy, extracted data, performed the trial quality analyses and entered data. Where any disagreements occured, the third reviewer was consulted. Methodological quality of the trials included in this review was assessed using the criteria described in the Cochrane Handbook. For dichotomous outcomes, relative risk with 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated, and for continuous outcomes, weighted mean difference with 95%CI was used.

Main results:

Two studies, with a total of 198 participants, were eligible for inclusion in this review. Based on one study, a lack of difference in the efficacy of benzodiazepines and passiflora was indicated. Dropout rates were similar between the two interventions. Although the findings from one study suggested an improvement in job performance in favour of passiflora (post-hoc outcome) and one study showed a lower rate of drowsiness as a side effect with passiflora as compared with mexazolam, neither of these findings reached statistical significance.

Authors' conclusions:

RCTs examining the effectiveness of passiflora for anxiety are too few in number to permit any conclusions to be drawn. RCTs with larger samples that compare the effectiveness of passiflora with placebo and other types of medication, including antidepressants, are needed.

This record should be cited as:

Miyasaka LS, Atallah ÁN, Soares B. Passiflora for anxiety disorder. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2007, Issue 1. Art. No.: CD004518. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD004518.pub2

Assessed as up to date:

November 13, 2006

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Primary Review Group:

Depression, Anxiety and Neurosis Group

Health topics:

Mental health > Anxiety disorders > Non-specific

Complementary & alternative medicine > Mental health > Anxiety disorders

Cochrane Summaries^beta

Independent high-quality evidence for health care decision making

Passiflora for the treatment of anxiety disorders in adults

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