Abstract
Background and aims:
Premature ventricular contraction (PVC) as one of the most common arrhythmias could worsen the morbidity of cardiovascular events, particularly concurrent with other risk factors. Considering the probable side effects of antiarrhythmic drugs chronic use, prescribing herbal medicines for such conditions is on the rise. Melissa officinalis (MO) is widely identified as an antiarrhythmic and cardioprotective agent but there is limited evidence for its clinical use. This research, thus, aimed to investigate the effects of MO tea among patients with PVCs.
Methods:
The present 12-week randomized controlled trial enrolled 60 patients with confirmed diagnosis of moderate to low-grade PVCs. The patients in intervention group received MO teabags (containing 2-gram dried leaves/250mL hot water) 2 times/day in addition to lifestyle modification recommendations, while control group only received lifestyle modification recommendations. After collecting the data, blood samples were gathered to explore serum concentrations of glucose and lipid markers. The number of premature ventricular beats and heart rates was determined by 24-hr rhythm Holter monitoring.
Results:
On average, the patients aged 47 years and approximately 67.8% (n=40) were women. The ANCOVA adjusted for baseline values and confounders revealed that patients in the MO tea group had significantly lower concentrations of triglyceride (adjusted mean (AO)=144.75mg/dl), total cholesterol (AO=155.35mg/dl), and fasting blood sugar (AO=90.85mg/dl), compared with the controls (AO=174.27, 171.99, 99.84mg/dl, respectively (P-value≤0.042). However, the intervention failed to affect LDL-C and HDL-C levels significantly. Significantly reduced frequency of 24-hr premature ventricular beats in the MO tea group (AO=2142.39) was also noted compared to the controls (AO=3126.05); (P-value=0.017). The 24-hr heartbeats showed only a significant decrease within the intervention group (P-value<0.01).
Conclusion:
Together, these results seem to support the higher cardioprotective effects of MO as a medicinal plant than lifestyle modifications alone. Nevertheless, further exploration of this hypothesis is warranted using large-scaled clinical trials.
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