Biomedical Research

Objective: To investigate the clinical effects of berberine treatment on renal atherosclerosis patients.

Methods: Ninety (90) renal atherosclerosis patients were recruited as study subjects. They were randomly divided into the control group and the treatment group. The control group was given routine blood pressure lowering and kidney-protection drugs. The treatment group received berberine. Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN), Serum creatinine (Scr) and Triglycerides (TGs) were assayed. Renal function and blood lipid changes of patients in two groups were compared. Doppler ultrasound was used to measure Resistance Index (MI), PSV, and aorta PSV ratio.

Results: Compared with the control group, SCR and BUN levels decreased significantly in the treatment group (p<0.05), showing that renal function of the patients improved. Serum total cholesterol TGs and Low Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol (LDL-C) levels were normalized, while RI, renal artery PSV, ratio of renal artery PSV and medium-sized artery PSV decreased. There were no significant differences between groups with respect to other indices (p>0.05).

Conclusion: Berberine can effectively regulate the blood lipid profiles of renal atherosclerosis patients, and improve their renal function, thereby relieving the severity of the disease. Thus berberin may be of clinical significance in the diagnosis and treatment of renal atherosclerosis.

Author(s): Zheng Xiaopeng, Xu Jizong, Wang Xusheng, Cao Fang
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