Efficacy of Tribulus terrestris L. (fruits) in menopausal transition symptoms: A randomized placebo controlled study

Abstract

IntroductionTo compare the efficacy of Tribulus terrestris Linn. (fruits) with placebo in menopausal transition symptoms. Materials and methodsPerimenopausal women (n=60) were equally randomized either to receive orally 3g powder of Tribulus or placebo twice daily for 8 weeks in this single-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel study. The primary outcome included the total score of Menopause Rating Scale (MRS). The secondary outcomes included the MRS composite subscale scores and severity of symptoms. Statistical tests were used to analyze the results. ResultsAt post-intervention, Tribulus in comparison to placebo showed a statistically significant reduction in the severity of menopausal transition symptoms, MRS total and composite subscale scores (P<0.001) without any significant side effects. The intra-group comparison showed a significant reduction in the MRS total, subscale scores (P<0.001) and severity of symptoms (P<0.05). At post-intervention, Tribulus group showed higher mean reduction in MRS score than the placebo group in the MRS total mean score (19.80 vs 11.97). Tribulus group showed comparatively higher mean reduction in MRS score than the placebo group in somatic (8.23 vs 4.72), psychological (6.63 vs 4.47) and urogenital (4.93 vs 2.73) composite subscale scores with a statistically significant difference (P<0.001) at post-intervention. ConclusionTribulus was more effective than placebo for alleviation of menopausal transition symptoms and may offer a safe alternative to hormone replacement therapy.