A Pilot Study Assessing the Short-term Use of Tanacetum parthenium for Treatment of Osteoarthritis

Context: Osteoarthritis remains one of the most common and debilitating diseases in the United States, afflicting nearly one-sixth of all adults over age 25 and over one-third of adults 65 and over. No etiological treatments are available for osteoarthritis, and current therapeutic regimens have only partial efficacy. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative disease with an increasingly well-characterized, inflammatory, etiological component. Since antiquity, Tanacetum parthenium (T parthenium or feverfew), a dietary supplement, has been recognized for its anti-inflammatory and neuropsychiatric properties. Recent evidence suggests that feverfew may attenuate the action of interleukin 1 (IL-1), a cytokine shown to contribute to the degeneration observed in osteoarthritis.Objective: The research team intended to evaluate feverfew’s potential as an osteoarthritis therapy.Design: The research team designed an open-label, intention-to-treat pilot study. Individuals were enrolled consecutively, in person and over a 1-mo period, and enrollment took place during routine office visits.Setting: The study took place at three diverse, primary care settings.Participants: Participants were 32 patients from the three clinics and were a diverse pool of individuals with documented osteoarthritis.Intervention: Participants could choose to take feverfew only or to continue osteoarthritis medications that they were using at the study’s initiation in addition to the feverfew. Participants took a 2-g dose of commercial- grade feverfew twice daily for 4 wk.Outcome Measures: Participants completed compliance diaries that they later submitted, establishing a record of treatment compliance. Arthritis status was evaluated by a questionnaire that comprised eight questions addressing features of an individual’s osteoarthritis, including (1) pain, (2) joint stiffness, and (3) functionality. Participants completed the questionnaire at baseline and at 1 mo after start of treatment.Results: Overall, participants reported statistically significant improvements in pain, joint, and functional areas (P < .001). The greatest improvement was reported for pain, but improvements in joint and functional assessments were also robust.Conclusion: This study supports the association of feverfew with symptom relief, as expressed by 30 participants who suffered from osteoarthritis. The findings further established feverfew as a possible treatment for individuals experiencing osteoarthritis. The research team recommends further research on this subject.