A Systematic Review of Medicinal Plants and Plant Derivatives Affecting Increase in Endometrial Thickness

Abstract

Endometrial thickness is one of the determinant factors in fertility success. This study was carried out to determine the effects of plants on increasing endometrial thickness and ultimately increasing fertility preservation. Key terms of "endometrium thickness" or "endometrial thickness" or "endometrial lining thickness" in combination with the words "Medicinal plant", "Herb" and "Phyto" were searched on the ISI, PubMed and Scopus databases. Then, the abstracts of the articles, as well as information obtained from other sources about medicinal plants and their derivatives from which their effects directly on endometrial thickness and pregnancy were studied, were selected. Besides, only clinical trials and laboratory studies between 2007 and 2017 were included. The results from this study showed that plants such as Cimicifuga racemosa and Aspalathus lineararis and plant derivatives such as Klimadynon and Icariin and plant formulations such as Xiaoyao powder, Erzhi pill and Siwu decoction can increase fertility in humans or animals by increasing endometrial thickness. Medicinal plants and their derivatives affect the thickness of the endometrium, mainly due to having phytoestrogen and can help maintain the fetus in the uterus and increase fertility preservation. The phytoestrogens available in plants are bound to ER-a receptors and mimics the function of estrogen. However, the effective dose, administration time, endogenous estrogen status and type of herbal prescription or derivatives are of important factors that should be considered in herbal therapy.