Menopausal symptoms impair the quality of life of many women, and although conventional treatments are often effective, their use is limited by adverse effects. Ojayeonjonghwan, OJa, is a traditional Oriental medicine that is used for both male and female reproductive health and has a long history of safe use. We evaluated the effectiveness of two variations of OJa (OJa1 and OJa2) for treating menopausal symptoms in ovariectomized (OVX) rats. Both OJa preparations were effective for relieving indicators of hot flashes and depression, and for preventing loss of bone mineral density and lean body mass. Only OJa 2 prevented memory dysfunction. These results show that the traditional Oriental medicine, Ojayeonjonghwan, has the potential to relieve menopausal symptoms in women and should be further evaluated in human clinical trials as an alternative to convention therapies in women for whom conventional therapies are not indicated or found to be ineffective.
Keywords: Ojayeonjonghwan; bone mineral density; depression; hot flashes; memory impairment; serotonin receptor.