Centella asiatica as a potential plaque stabilizer: Future preventive therapy for cardiovascular disease

WHO states that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the cause of 31% of deaths worldwide, reaching 17.7 million deaths per year. Causes of CVD, including smoking, unbalanced food intake, low physical activity, and excessive alcohol consumption. The common pathophysiology of CVD is the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. It begins with endothelial dysfunction that is closely related to diabetes mellitus (DM). Existing treatment focus on preventing the formation of atherosclerotic plaques by lowering blood cholesterol levels and blood viscosity. It prevents the formation of shear strength that can damage the endothelial layer. Centella asiatica (CA) is a well-known herb used as an oxidative-stress remedy. Literature review was conducted by searching two journal databases, PubMed and Ebscohost. The search was carried out using Boolean Operator as follows: cardiovascular AND therapy AND “Centella asiatica”. Sources are not year-limited and include animal studies, randomized-controlled trial reports or related reviews. Based on the literature review, various studies are linking the protective effect of CA on CVD. Ramachandran et al. conducted an in vivo study by using mice with DM. Lipid profiles of DM mice were given asiatic acid shifted towards normalcy, which reduces the risk of atherosclerotic plaque formation. Cesarone et al. conducted Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) studies by using the group given CA therapy for 12 months. The study showed an increase in Gray-Scale median (GSM) parameters and an improvement in the texture of atherosclerotic plaques, which showed the formation of a stable with low risk for thrombus. Luzzi et al. conducted RCT study on high-oxidative stress asymptomatic patients given Pycnogenol and CA extract. It showed an increase in the stability of atherosclerotic plaque as indicated by an increase in plaque density, a decrease in the number and size of plaques. These results indicate the potential of CA as a good preventive cardiovascular therapy.WHO states that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the cause of 31% of deaths worldwide, reaching 17.7 million deaths per year. Causes of CVD, including smoking, unbalanced food intake, low physical activity, and excessive alcohol consumption. The common pathophysiology of CVD is the formation of atherosclerotic plaques. It begins with endothelial dysfunction that is closely related to diabetes mellitus (DM). Existing treatment focus on preventing the formation of atherosclerotic plaques by lowering blood cholesterol levels and blood viscosity. It prevents the formation of shear strength that can damage the endothelial layer. Centella asiatica (CA) is a well-known herb used as an oxidative-stress remedy. Literature review was conducted by searching two journal databases, PubMed and Ebscohost. The search was carried out using Boolean Operator as follows: cardiovascular AND therapy AND “Centella asiatica”. Sources are not year-limited and include animal studies, randomized-controlled trial reports or related r...