Fast pain relief in exercise-induced acute musculoskeletal pain by turmeric-boswellia formulation: A randomized placebo-controlled double-blinded multicentre study

Plant extracts with analgesic properties are seldom considered for treatment of acute musculoskeletal pain due to delay in onset of analgesia. Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and boswellia (Boswellia serrata) extracts are well-studied anti-inflammatory compounds gaining in popularity and used as an alternative to conventional treatments for musculoskeletal pain. This study analyzed the analgesic effect of a formulation of turmeric and boswellia extracts in sesame oil (Rhuleave-K, TBF) in reducing exercise-induced acute musculoskeletal pain in healthy participants. METHODS: In this randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled, single-dose, single-day, multicentre study, a total of 232 participants (TBF n = 116; placebo n = 116) having moderate-to-severe exercise-induced acute musculoskeletal pain were randomized in an allocation concealed 1:1 ratio to receive a single dose of 1000 mg of TBF or placebo. The outcome measures were numerical rating scale (NRS), categorical pain relief scale (PRS), onset of analgesia, and short form of McGill questionnaire (SF-MPQ). NRS and PRS were measured from predose to every 30 minutes interval of postdose up to 6 hours at rest, with movement and applying pressure on the affected part. The onset of analgesia was measured from the time of dosage and censored at 6 hours of postdose. The sum of pain intensity difference (SPID6) and total pain relief (TOTPAR6) at 6 hours was, respectively, analyzed from NRS and PRS scores. RESULTS: TBF showed a significant reduction in pain intensity (SPID6(rest)) with 97.85% improvement in cumulative responder analysis compared with 2.46% in placebo. The onset of pain relief was fast and highly significant in the TBF group with 99% of participants having a mean perceptible pain relief at 68.5 minutes (95% confidence interval, 59.5–77.4) and 96% of participants having a mean meaningful pain relief at 191.6 minutes (95% confidence interval, 176.7–206.4) compared to the placebo group. Highly significant and continuous improvement in pain relief was observed in the TBF group with 93% of participants having ≥ 50% of maximum TOTPAR6 with a number needed to treat of 1.1 at rest. CONCLUSION: Exercise-induced acute musculoskeletal pain can be effectively relieved by TBF (Rhuleave-K) in about 3 hours signifying its strong analgesic activity.