Summary
Pycnogenol has not been directly studied in terms of treating varicocele, however it has been shown to successfully treat chronic venous insufficiency (CVI), the cause of varicose veins, in other parts of the body.
The effects of pycnogenol seem superior to other CVI treatments including daflon (diosimin and hesperidin) and escin (horse chestnut seed extract). It is surely possible that if pycnogenol treats chronic venous insufficiency it can also treat varicocele. Also, extrapolating from the studies related to CVI, it may be more effective than current supplemental treatment options.
The dosages of pycnogenol used are relatively high (and, therefore, expensive) at around 300-360mg per day.
Studies
2014 Review: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23775628
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26648668
Human RCT (double blind): Pycnogenol improves various metrics of chronic venous insufficiency
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10844161
Duration: 60 days (with measurements taken at baseline, 30 day and 60 days)
Dosage: 300mg pycnogenol (100 mg x 3/day)
Participants: 40, split equally into pycnogenol and placebo groups.
Findings: Roughly 60% of patients receiving pycnogenol saw complete disappearance of edema (swelling/accumulation of fluid) and pain at the end of the treatment. Almost all reported reduced leg heaviness, with complete disappearince in approx 33% of patients. Changes were statistically significant. Improvement on metrics was seen at 30 days and improved further at 60 days.
Surprisingly there was no effect on the venous blood flow was observed in either group.
Human RCT (unblinded): Pycnogenol better than Venostasin (horse chestnut seed extract)
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11933130
Dosage:
- 600 mg horse chestnut seed extract per day (2 x 300mg) equivalent of (100 mg aescin)
- or 360 mg Pycnogenol per day (3 x 120mg)
Duration: 4 weeks
Participants: 40 patients suffering from chronic venous insufficiency
Outcome measures:
- Patient/physician ratings: pain, feeling of ‘heaviness’, cramps, night-time swelling of the lower legs, and reddening of the skin.
- Objective: Lower leg circumference, total cholesterol, low density lipoproteins (LDL) and high density lipoproteins (HDL).
Findings: In the pycnogenol group the circumference of lower limbs in a highly significant manner. Total cholesterol and LDL both significantly fell. All other patient, physician ratings improved on the patient/physician ratings also significantly fell. Results were far better than in the horse chestnut seed extract group
Cautions: High dose of pycnogenol was run off against a low dose of aescin (although the dose was still higher than the dose of aescin-escin used in other studies).
Case-control ex vivo study: Pycnogenol improves venous Tone in varicose veins
http://pubmedcentralcanada.ca/pmcc/articles/PMC3933503/
Design: Case-control ex vivo study. Looked varicose veins removed from people. Some of the donors had been treated with pycnogenol, some hadn't. Furthermore, the veins were compared to normal veins from other people.
Dosage: 150mg Pycnogenol/day
Participants: 30 treated with pycnogenol, 10 untreated controls, 5 normal, unused vein segments harvested for bypass grafting.
Duration: 3 months
Findings: Pycnogenol treated veins stretched less and dilated less than control varicose veins from untreated subjects. They also recovered their original shape faster than control varicose veins from untreated subjects. These findings indicate better venous tone. While the veins from pycnogenol treated individuals did not perform as well as normal veins, they behaved more like normal veins than they did the control varicose veins.
GOOD REFERENCES IN THIS STUDY - RE-READ
RCT + Open Label Trial
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11081989
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20579863
Pycnogenol superior to daflon
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16708123
Duration: 8 weeks.
Groups/Dosage: Group (1) Pycnogenol 150 mg daily, Group (2) Pycnogenol 300 mg daily, Group (3) Daflon, 1000 mg daily.
Findings: The positive effects of treatment with Pycnogenol after 8 weeks were significantly larger in comparison with the Daflon group.
2017 Study: Pycnogenol® and l-arginine aspartate on lower urinary dysfunction compared with saw palmetto extract
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2225411016300323
Pycnogenol may boost DHT
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17045317
Pycnogenol may boost glutathione
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1179/135100006X116664
Pycnogenol + Troxerutin
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14765037?dopt=Abstract