Abstract
Insomnia affects approximately one-third of the adult population and contributes to
increased rates of absenteeism, health care use, and social disability. Extracts of
the roots of valerian (Valeriana officinalis) are widely used for inducing sleep and improving sleep quality. A systematic review
of randomized, placebo-controlled trials of valerian for improving sleep quality is
presented. An extensive literature search identified 16 eligible studies examining
a total of 1093 patients. Most studies had significant methodologic problems, and
the valerian doses, preparations, and length of treatment varied considerably. A dichotomous
outcome of sleep quality (improved or not) was reported by 6 studies and showed a
statistically significant benefit (relative risk of improved sleep = 1.8, 95% confidence
interval, 1.2-2.9), but there was evidence of publication bias in this summary measure.
The available evidence suggests that valerian might improve sleep quality without
producing side effects. Future studies should assess a range of doses of standardized
preparations of valerian and include standard measures of sleep quality and safety.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
February 22,
2006
Received:
October 4,
2005
Footnotes
This work was supported by Grant Number 1 K08 ATO1338-01 (Dr Bent) from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Identification
Copyright
© 2006 Elsevier Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
