Garlic for peripheral arterial occlusive disease (Cochrane Review)

A substantive amendment to this systematic review was last made on 09 January 1997. Cochrane reviews are regularly checked and updated if necessary.

Background: Commercially available preparations of garlic have been reported to have beneficial effects on some of the risk factors associated with atherosclerosis.

Objectives: The objective of this review was to assess the effects of garlic (both dried and non-powdered preparations) for the treatment of peripheral arterial occlusive disease.

Search strategy: The reviewers searched the Cochrane Peripheral Vascular Diseases Group trials register, AMED, EMBASE, BIDS ISI, abstracts of relevant symposia and reference lists of relevant articles up to February 2003. The reviewers also contacted pharmaceutical companies, investigators and experts in garlic therapies.

Selection criteria: Randomised trials of garlic therapy in patients with lower limb atherosclerosis. The main outcomes were objective measures of progression of underlying atherosclerosis (e.g. ankle pressure measurements, treadmill testing) and subjective measures (e.g. symptom progression).

Data collection and analysis: At least two reviewers extracted data and assessed trial quality independently. The reviewers contacted investigators to obtain information needed for the review that could not be found in published reports.

Main results: One eligible trial with 78 participants was found. Both men and women (aged 40-75) were included. The follow-up period was short, 12 weeks only.After twelve weeks of treatment, pain free walking distance increased from 161 to 207 m in the group on garlic and from 172 to 203 m in the placebo group. This was not a statistically significant difference. There was no difference in change of systolic or diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, ankle and brachial pressures. No severe side effects were observed and nine patients taking garlic (28%) and four patients taking placebo (12%) complained of a noticeable garlic smell.One further trial was excluded from the review because it did not include any clinical measurements.

Reviewers' conclusions: One small trial of short duration found no statistically significant effect of garlic on walking distance.

Citation: Jepson RG, Kleijnen J, Leng GC. Garlic for peripheral arterial occlusive disease (Cochrane Review). In: The Cochrane Library, Issue 3, 2003. Oxford: Update Software.

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This is an abstract of a regularly updated, systematic review prepared and maintained by the Cochrane Collaboration. The full text of the review is available in The Cochrane Library (ISSN 1464-780X).

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