Abstract
We have conducted questionnaire and measured serum liver function tests on 153 patients whom have received a treatment at a local Oriental medicine clinic in Seoul from Sept. 1, 2002 to Dec. 31, 2002. Patients were categorized into the groups of control(10), decoction group(41), herbal group(5), western medicine group(45), and the group taking both herbal and western medicines(55) concurrently or separately. This study was conducted to investigate how these treatment methods can affect the liver functions. Following results were obtained : 1) Most of the research subjects were male(l03 individuals) living in large urban area, with drinking habit, highly educated, and with normal marriage. For the treatment history, 45 individuals received western medicine treatment(28.85%), 46 with Oriental medicine (29.49%), and 55 patients(35.26%) experienced both forms of treatment. 2) Measuring SD of serum liver functions for all the research subjects, T-protein was 6.95(0.73)g/dl, 4.07(0.51)g／dl for albumin, 0.44(0.19)mg／dl for T-bilirubin, 23.18(18.68)U／L for ALT, 27.42(27.43)U／L for AST, and 22l.27(64.58)mg／dl for LDH. 3) Among the research subjects with the liver functions outside of normal range were 0.64% for T-protein, 3.21% for T-bilirubin and ALT, 36.62% for AST, 0.64% for LDH, and none for Albumin. 4) Confusion variables which may affect the liver functions such as age, smoking, drinking, occupation, and residence were eliminated in calculation and no significant differences were witnessed between the control and experiment groups. 5) In measuring affects of treatment duration on the liver functions, no statistical significances were shown in multiple regression's ,${\beta}$(SE) values. 6) The values of odd ratio in the experiment groups compared to the control were in the range of $0.26(0.22){\sim}0.62(1.23)$. but T-bilirubin of the group receiving both Oriental and western medicine was 1.47(1.90) which showed statistical increase(p<0.001). 7) Factors affecting the liver functions are drinking volume per round duration of alcohol intake, western medicine treatment, gender, and age difference caused significant influences. 8) 57 individuals with serum liver functions out of normal range were mostly male, living in large urban area, median age of 38.89, with normal marriage, highly educated drinking less than once a week with less than 2 bottles per round, and with prior treatment in either western or Oriental medicine. Summarizing above results, we can carefully deduce that taking herbal medicine (both decoction and pills) or western medicine doesn't cause much affect in the liver functions. But taking two forms of medication simultaneously or altering dosage affect significant increase in the T-bilirubin level, thus one needs to take precaution when taking both. Further research is needed in this field to verify this evidence.