A Review of Complementary and Alternative Medicine Therapies on Muscular Atrophy: A Literature Review of In Vivo/In Vitro Studies

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this review is to evaluate the recent treatment and study trends of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) treatments on muscular atrophy by reviewing in vivo/in vitro studies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The searches were conducted via electronic databases including PubMed, the Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang MED, and five Korean databases. Only in vivo and in vitro studies were included in this study. RESULTS: A total of 44 studies (27 in vivo studies, 8 in vitro studies, and 9 in vivo with in vitro) were included. No serious maternal or fetal complications occurred. There were various animal models induced with muscular atrophy through “hindlimb suspension”, “nerve damage”, ‘alcohol or dexamethasone treatment', “diabetes”, “CKD”, “stroke”, “cancer”, “genetic modification”, etc. In 28 of 36 articles measuring muscle mass, CAM significantly increased the mass. Additionally, 10 of them showed significant improvement in muscle function. In most in vitro studies, significant increases in both the diameter of myotubes and muscle cell numbers were reported. The mechanisms of action of protein synthesis, degradation, autophagy, and apoptotic markers were also investigated. CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate that CAM could prevent muscular atrophy. Further studies about CAM on muscular atrophy are needed.