Active Ingredient Saw Palmetto (serenoa Repens [bartram] Small)

saw palmetto ( serenoa repens, sabal serrulata ) is used popularly in europe for symptoms associated with benign prostatic hypertrophy (enlargement of the prostate). although not considered standard of care in the united states, it is the most popular herbal treatment for this condition.

Source:

medlineplus herbs and supplements: saw palmetto (serenoa repens [bartram] small)

Medical Condition	Uses based on scientific evidence	Grade*
hypertrophy (benign) of prostate without urinary obstruction	numerous human trials report that saw palmetto improves symptoms of benign prostatic hypertrophy (bph) such as nighttime urination, urinary flow, and overall quality of life, although it may not greatly reduce the size of the prostate. the effectiveness may be similar to the medication finasteride (proscar ) with fewer side effects. although the quality of these studies has been variable, overall they suggest effectiveness. saw palmetto has not been thoroughly compared to other types of drugs	a
malignant neoplasm of prostate	there is not enough scientific evidence to recommend the product pc-spes (which contains saw palmetto) for prostate cancer. pc-spes also contains seven other herbs ( chrysanthemum morifolium, isatis indigotica, glycyrrhiza glabra, ganoderma lucidum, panax pseudo-ginseng, rabdosia rubescens, and scutellaria baicalensis ). it has been a popular treatment for prostate cancer, but the u.s. food and drug administration (fda) has issued a warning not to use pc-spes because	c
other chronic postoperative pain	a prospective, randomized, open label, one-year study was designed to assess the safety and efficacy of saw palmetto and finasteride in the treatment of men diagnosed with category iii prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain (cp/cpps). cp/cpps treated with saw palmetto had no appreciable long-term improvement. in contrast, patients treated with finasteride had significant and durable improvement in multiple parameters except for voiding.	c
other disorders of bladder	there is currently little information on the effectiveness of saw palmetto for the treatment of bladder disorders.	c

*Key to grades
A: Strong scientific evidence for this use;
B: Good scientific evidence for this use;
C: Unclear scientific evidence for this use;
D: Fair scientific evidence against this use;
F: Strong scientific evidence against this use.