Successful use of Shakuyaku-kanzo-to, a traditional herbal medicine, for intractable symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome: a case report

Abstract

Shakuyaku-kanzo-to (SKT) is a traditional herbal medicine that is widely used for muscular cramp and abdominal pain. We administered SKT for a patient with thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) complaining of several resting symptoms. A 28-year-old female patient complained of intractable pain in the left arm, shoulder, and back and weakness, numbness, and muscular cramp in the left arm. She was diagnosed as TOS by digital subtraction angiography. Two days after the start of administration of SKT, her severe pain was markedly improved. Although numbness of the left arm was not improved, her overall pain score was reduced by 2 on the 7th day after the start of SKT. SKT has several pharmacological effects including analgesic and antiinflammatory effects, vasodilation, and muscle relaxation. Thus, our report suggests that SKT could be a first-line agent for the conservative treatment of TOS.