Items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care - herbal medicines by all Sub-ICB Locations
Why it matters:
Under a traditional herbal registration (THR) there is no requirement to prove scientifically that a product works; the registration is based on longstanding use of the product as a traditional medicine.
Due to the lack of scientific evidence required to register these products with the MHRA, the joint clinical working group felt that they were suitable for inclusion in this guidance.
In addition to herbal treatments with a THR, other natural products without robust evidence of clinical effectiveness should not be prescribed at NHS expense and fall within these recommendations. These products do not have a THR, are not recognised as supplements in the NHS Drug Tariff and do not appear as medicines in the BNF. These include:
- natural oils, eg eucalyptus and almond
- coenzyme Q10 (ubiquinone and ubidecarenone)
- evening primrose (gamolenic acid).
MHRA withdrew the licence for 2-gamolenic acid preparations in 2002 due to a lack of evidence of efficacy.
NHS England recommend that GPs:- Do not initiate.
- Deprescribe in patients currently prescribed this medicine.
Please note: this measure does not currently include natural oil preparations.
Description: Cost of herbal medicines per 1000 patients
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Tagged as: Cost Saving, Efficacy, NHS England - items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care (or browse all measures)
Sub-ICB Locations are ordered by mean percentile over the past six months. Each chart shows the results for the individual Sub-ICB Location, plus deciles across all Sub-ICB Locations in the NHS in England.
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