Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39987124›Full record

SynthesisBMC complementary medicine and therapies2025

Does supplementation with pine bark extract improve cardiometabolic risk factors? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Shooka Mohammadi, Tamas Fulop, Abdelouahed Khalil, Sara Ebrahimi, Motahareh Hasani, Somayeh Ziaei, Farnaz Farsi, Elham Mirtaheri, Mostafa Afsharianfar, Javad Heshmati

Abstract readSystematic ReviewMeta-Analysis
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BMC complementary medicine and therapies, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Ethnopharmacology ofFrontiers in pharmacology · 2025
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Shooka MohammadiNutrition and Metabolic Diseases Research Center, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, 6135715794, Iran. shooka.mohammadi@gmail.com.
Tamas FulopDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada.
Abdelouahed KhalilDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Canada.
Sara EbrahimiThe Ritchie Centre, Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Clayton, VIC, Australia.
Motahareh HasaniDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Health, Golestan University of Medical Sciences, Gorgan, Iran.
Somayeh ZiaeiDepartment of Anesthesia, Imam Reza Hospital, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran.
Farnaz FarsiDepartment of Nutrition, School of Public Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Elham MirtaheriDepartment of Biochemistry and Dietetics, Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
Mostafa AfsharianfarDepartment of Community Nutrition, School of Nutrition and Food Sciences, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
Javad HeshmatiDepartment of Nutritional Sciences, School of Nutritional Sciences and Food Technology, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, 6715847141, Iran. javad.heshmati@gmail.com.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSupplementation with pine bark extract (PBE) may improve risk factors associated with cardiometabolic syndrome (CMS). The effects of PBE supplementation on cardiometabolic risk factors were evaluated in this systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs).

methodsA comprehensive search of various databases was performed to identify relevant RCTs published up to September 2024. A random-effects model was employed for the meta-analysis, which included 27 RCTs with 1,685 participants.

resultsThe findings indicated that PBE supplementation significantly reduced systolic blood pressure (SBP) (weighted mean difference (WMD): -2.26 mmHg, 95% confidence interval (CI): -3.73, -0.79; P = 0.003), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) (WMD: -2.62 mmHg, 95% CI: -3.71, -1.53; P < 0.001), fasting blood sugar (FBS) (WMD: -6.25 mg/dL, 95% CI: -9.97, -2.53; P = 0.001), hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) (WMD: -0.32%, 95% CI: -0.54, -0.11; P = 0.003), body weight (WMD: -1.37 kg, 95% CI: -1.86, -0.88; P < 0.001), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (WMD: -5.07 mg/dL, 95% CI: -9.21, -0.94; P = 0.016) in the PBE-treated group compared to their untreated counterparts. However, no significant impact of PBE was observed on waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), or serum levels of insulin, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), and total cholesterol (TC).

conclusionsSupplementation with PBE may ameliorate specific cardiometabolic risk factors, as indicated by reductions in body weight, DBP, SBP, FBS, LDL, and HbA1c levels. This approach can be regarded as an adjunct therapeutic strategy for CMS management. Further high-quality trials with larger sample sizes and longer durations are required to validate these findings.

Indexed as

Cardiometabolic Risk FactorsDietary SupplementsMetabolic SyndromePinusPlant BarkPlant ExtractsBlood PressureHumansRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicPlant ExtractsCardiometabolic syndromeFlavangenolGlycemic parametersLipid profileOligopinPycnogenol

Identifiers

PMID39987124
PMCPMC11847364

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.