Background/Objectives: Cervical and lumbar radiculopathy and carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) are common conditions that are associated with persistent pain, functional impairment, and reduced quality of life. Nutraceutical strategies targeting neuroinflammatory and oxidative stress pathways are being investigated as adjunctive approaches in pain management. This study evaluated the clinical association between supplementation with a Gastrodiae elata Blume-based nutraceutical formulation (Assonal®) and changes in pain intensity, functional outcomes, symptom burden, and quality of life in patients with radiculopathy and CTS. Methods: A single-centre pragmatic before–after clinical study enrolled adults with cervical or lumbar radiculopathy and/or CTS. Participants received Assonal® (two tablets daily) for two months. Pain intensity was assessed using the Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NPRS) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Secondary outcomes included the Back Pain Functional Scale (BPFS), the Boston Carpal Tunnel Questionnaire (BCTQ), the Neuropathic Pain Symptom Inventory (NPSI), the EuroQol-5D-5L (EQ-5D-5L), and the Global Perceived Effect (GPE). Longitudinal within-subject changes were analysed using repeated-measures statistical tests. Results: Thirty-four participants completed the study. The observed pain intensity decreased significantly from baseline to two months (NPRS: 7.2 ± 1.3 to 3.6 ± 1.2; VAS: 7.3 ± 2.1 to 3.3 ± 1.7; p < 0.0001) and functional measures showed improvements across BPFS and BCTQ assessments, accompanied by reductions in symptom burden (NPSI). Quality of life increased significantly (EQ-5D-5L index: 0.49 ± 0.23 to 0.81 ± 0.12; p < 0.0001), and most patients reported perceived clinical improvement. Conclusions: In this exploratory real-world study, Assonal® supplementation was associated with clinically relevant improvements in pain intensity, functional performance, and quality of life in patients with radiculopathy and CTS, suggesting the need for further investigation of these associations in future controlled clinical studies.
Invernizzi et al. (Thu,) studied this question.