Acute liver injury following turmeric use in Tuscany: An analysis of the Italian Phytovigilance database and systematic review of case reports

Lombardi N, Crescioli G, Maggini V, Ippoliti I, Menniti-Ippolito F, Gallo E, Brilli V, Lanzi C, Mannaioni G, Firenzuoli F, Vannacci A · British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology

All seven Italian cases involved high-dose, high-bioavailability curcuma formulations, with positive dechallenge in most; of the 23 literature cases, most patients were also taking at least one other medication and 16 had a positive dechallenge.

Population

7 Tuscan pharmacovigilance cases plus 23 published case reports of Curcuma longa-associated acute hepatitis

Intervention

Curcuma longa-containing dietary supplements

Limitations

Spontaneous reports cannot give incidence and confounding by co-medication is common; the association with enhanced-absorption formulations specifically is the paper's most useful and least confounded observation.