Herbal medicine for rheumatic diseases: promises kept?

Traditional healers throughout the world have relied on herbal medicines in their practices for millennia to treat a wide array of conditions, including arthritis. Present-day patients continue to seek care from complementary and alternative providers and more effective and less toxic treatments. A broad foundation of laboratory studies suggests that many herbal products have pertinent medicinal effects for the management of diseases like osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. However, few high quality clinical trials have yet been carried out to substantiate the safety and efficacy of herbal medicines. Some of the best research to date in this area is summarized in this review.