Effectiveness of Gorei-san (TJ-17) for treatment of SSRI-induced nausea and dyspepsia:: Preliminary observations

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are apt to cause gastrointestinal adverse events such as nausea and dyspepsia. Gorei-san (TJ-17), which is composed of five herbs (Alismatis rhizoma, Atractylodis lanceae rhizoma, Polyporus, Hoelen, and Cinnamomi cortex), is a Japanese herbal medicine that has been used to treat nausea, dry mouth, edema, headache, and dizziness. The authors investigated the efficacy of TJ-17 for patients who experienced nausea or dyspepsia induced by SSRIs. Twenty outpatients who experienced nausea or dyspepsia induced by SSRls were recruited for the study. Seventeen patients were female, three were male, and patient age ranged from 21 to 74 years (49.8 +/- 17.0 years). TJ-17 was added to the previous regimen. Nausea and dyspepsia disappeared completely in nine patients, decreased in four patients, decreased slightly in two patients, and did not change in five patients. No adverse events were associated with the addition of TJ-17 in any patient.