Alpha-Lipoic Acid, Palmitoylethanolamide, Myrrh, and Oxygen-Ozone Therapy Improve Pharmacological Therapy in Acute Painful Lumbosacral Radiculopathy due to Herniated Disc
Observational studyHumansWith alpha-lipoic acid and myrrh
This study tested palmitoylethanolamide together with alpha-lipoic acid and myrrh. Its results cannot be assigned to palmitoylethanolamide alone. More combination studies.
- Design
- Observational study
- Subjects
- 62 patients with acute sciatica from a herniated disc at one Rome hospital, in four groups of 15 to 16
- Dose used in the study
- Drug therapy alone; drug therapy plus the supplement; drug therapy plus oxygen-ozone injections; or all three. Supplement doses not stated in the abstract
- Duration
- 4 weeks
- What was measured
- Pain (NRS-11), Oswestry Disability Index, SF-12, opioid use at 2 and 4 weeks
What the authors reported
The study found:
- All four groups improved.
- At 4 weeks, each added treatment beat drug therapy alone on pain and disability (supplement group: NRS p = 0.017, ODI p = 0.004).
- The SF-12 mental health component did not differ significantly between groups.
- Opioid days were the same across groups, but the share needing opioids was 60% on drugs alone, 40% with the supplement, 20% with ozone and 25% with all three.
Limits of this study
A prospective, open-label, comparative observational design (not described as randomised), about 15 per group; the authors name the small numbers and no long-term follow-up as limitations. The supplement combined three compounds. Acute sciatica improves in most people within weeks whatever the treatment.
Source
Entry checked against the abstract on PubMed on 2026-10-19. The dose shown is the dose the researchers used. It is not a recommendation. How to read this page.