Novel Treatment of Intermittent Claudication in Patients With Peripheral Arterial Disease Using Danshen Gegen (D&G) Capsule

July 26, 2019 updated by: Professor Bryan Ping Yen YAN, Chinese University of Hong Kong

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) due to lower limb arterial blockages affects significant proportion of the population with an age-adjusted prevalence of approximately 12%. Claudication induced walking impairment can be debilitating and adversely affects social, leisure, and occupational activities in many patients and is associated with higher mortality among PAD patients.

Unfortunately, very few effective therapies are available to improve leg symptoms and exercise performance in PAD patients. Surgery is the last resort but results vary. Therefore, there is a large unmet need for medical therapies that can improve long-term walking performance and functional capacity in PAD patients.

Danshen and Gegen (D&G) are commonly used Chinese herbal medicine in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. D&G study has been extensively researched and continued at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) for their antioxidative and vasodilator properties, modulate anti-atherosclerosis and improve arthrogenic athophysiology. Three randomized trials were completed at the CUHK showing D&G improved lipid profile, vascular function and thinned down the internal layer of the carotid artery. One may expect the same with lower limb arteries. Extensive clinical experiences of use in China and Hong Kong indicated that D&G are well tolerated and safe.

This project is a randomized control trial to determine the efficacy and Safety of D&G in improving the functional capacity & QoL in patients with symptomatic PAD. The results of this study have the potential to change local and international practice in providing a much needed therapeutic option in the treatment of PAD.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Peripheral arterial disease involving the lower limbs is becoming an increasingly important health issue which places considerable burden on individuals, communities and health care resources. PAD affects an estimated 27 million adults >55 years of age in Europe and North America (1). The prevalence of PAD in Asia is expected to be similar and is likely to rise as the Chinese population ages. Intermittent claudication affects most patients with PAD. Although IC is not limb-threatening, the loss of walking ability and the experience of pain with ambulation can cause significant social, leisure, and occupational impairment in many patients (2-4). The decreased QoL experienced in patients with IC is on par with other cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure and heart attack. More alarmingly, physical disability is associated with higher risk of death among PAD patients. For these reasons and because patients are chronically disabled, the treatment of IC has increasingly become a major clinical focus in cardiovascular research.

For PAD patients, it is critical to focus on therapies that can reduce the underlying cardiovascular risk as well as improving functional status and Qol. Although multiple therapies (antiplatelet agents, statins, anti-hypertensive agents) have been proven to reduce cardiovascular risk in PAD patients, very few therapeutic agents have been shown to improve symptoms of IC in PAD patients (5). As such there is a large unmet need in terms of leg-specific therapies that can improve walking performance and functional capacity for this debilitating disease. Traditional Chinese herbal medicine such as Danshen and Gegen are well established in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and well tolerated by most patients. The studies done at the Institute of Chinese Medicine of the CUHK showed particularly encouraging results (6-8). The outcomes of this study have the potential to change local and international practice in providing a novel therapeutic option in the treatment of symptomatic PAD. As parallel laboratory research is being done to identify the most active components of the D&G formula in preparation for drug development, the efficacy of D&G in PAD will offer more assurance for the systemic efforts.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

107

Phase

  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Hong Kong
    • New Territories
      • Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong
        • Prince of Wales Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

38 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Men and women 40 years or older
  2. With stable intermittent claudication secondary to PAD defined as resting ABI <0.90 and a ≥10mmHg decrease in ankle artery blood pressure after exercise.
  3. No change in existing therapy for claudication within 3 months of study enrollment.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Critical limb ischemia defined by ischemic rest pain, ulceration, or gangrene
  2. Major lower limb amputation
  3. Surgical or endovascular revascularization for PAD within 3 months prior to enrolment
  4. Exercise limitation due to significant concomitant disease (e.g. severe arthritis, cardiac or pulmonary disease)
  5. Pregnant women and women who are breastfeeding
  6. Patients who are currently on Warfarin
  7. Patients with resting systolic blood pressure below 100mmHg (SBP < 100mmHg)

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Active Comparator: Danshen Gegen Capsule
3 capsules (500 mg per capsule) twice daily for 24 weeks
Drug: Danshen Gegen Capsule

Danshen can dilate blood vessels, reduce the number of angina attacks and significantly improve endothelial function in patients with Coronary Angina Pectoris.

Gegen is also effective in dilating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular of the brain, and improving blood circulation. The main active ingredient of Gegen isoflavones is effective in dilating the coronary arteries, improving metabolism in normal and ischemic myocardium and reducing blood pressure, heart rate and myocardial oxygen consumption.

Other Names:
  • D&G
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
3 capsules (500 mg per capsule) twice daily for 24 weeks
Drug: Placebo

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Change in total distance walked on a standardized graded treadmill
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Change in distance walked to onset of claudication
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks
Change in health related quality of life assessed by EuroQol-5 Dimension
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks
Change in functional status assessed by Walking Impairment Questionnaire
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks
Rates of combined cardiovascular events including vascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization, or readmission to hospital for a vascular or atherosclerosis-related complication
Time Frame: At 24 weeks
At 24 weeks
Change in ankle brachial index before and after exercise by brachial-to-ankle pulse wave velocity
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks
Changes in arterial stiffness assessed by brachial-to-ankle pulse wave velocity
Time Frame: between baseline and 24 weeks
between baseline and 24 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Chinese University of Hong Kong

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Bryan Ping Yen Yan, Chinese University of Hong Kong

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

October 28, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 2, 2017

Study Completion (Actual)

June 2, 2017

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 10, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 2, 2015

First Posted (Estimate)

March 5, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

July 29, 2019

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

July 26, 2019

Last Verified

July 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • DG-PAD

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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