Limbrel: New Medication for Arthritis
Saturday May 6, 2006
Limbrel is a prescription medication used to treat inflammation. This FDA approved medication is known as a "botanical medical food." Limbrel is made from the bark and root extracts of two botanicals. The medication is an a class of substances called flavonoids, and works by inhibiting enzymes that cause inflammation.
The exciting part about Limbrel is that it does not appear to have the significant side-effects seen with other types of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications. In particular, Limbrel appears to be safe in elderly patients, and in patients who have a history of stomach ulcers. These patients often could not take other medications for arthritis--now Limbrel may present a reasonable option.
Comments
Limbrel may be a “botanical medical food”, which sounds to me like a placebo, but it is the firat thing since they took Vioxx off the market that I have been able to take for my Osteoarthritis. I have Reflux disease, and I have tried all kinds of things since Vioxx, and they all made me sick. In fact, the last one was Celebrex and it left me with a really low blood count from a stomach bleed.
Can you send me any proof that limbrel has
been approved by the FDA. HMO has denied it as an option because it says Limbrel is only approved as a medical food product.
Limbrel is not an FDA regulated substance, and thus is not reviewed by the FDA. Limbrel is classified as a medical food, and thus the FDA does not review this product.
Is Limbrel a placebo? Since it’s not reviewed by the FDA, how does a patient know it’s safe?
No, Limbrel is not a placebo. There are many treatments that people use that are not FDA regulated. The same is true of glucosamine and chondroitin. Not having a treatment FDA approved does not mean it is unsafe or not helpful, rather it means that the treatment has not undergone the same level of scrutiny of some FDA regulated medications.
Regards,
Jonathan Cluett, M.D.
Guide to Orthopedics
http://orthopedics.about.com