| ORIGINAL ARTICLE |
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| Year : 2004 | Volume
: 12
| Issue : 1 | Page : 58-62 |
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Herbal alternative in topical burn therapy
Anurag Jain, T Ayyappan, MF Shaikh, Nischal Naik, Prashant Baranwal
Department of Burns & Plastic Surgery, BJ Medical College & Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad, India
Correspondence Address:
T Ayyappan
Associate Professor, Department of Burns & Plastic Surgery, BJ Medical College & Civil Hospital, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
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Twenty patients irrespective of gender who sustained burns of varying etiology and TBSA (Total body surface area) not exceeding 40% were selected for a nonrandomized prospective clinical trial to test the efficacy of a topical herbal ointment (1% pure extract of Argyreia Speciosa) as an alternative to current topical antibiotic therapy.
The efficacy of the ointment was gauged by clinical parameters and was compared with Silver Sulphadiazine cream in cases of symmetrical wounds. The ointment did not have any inherent antimicrobial action as indicated by bacteriological studies in serial concentrations but wound healing proceeded without any deterioration of wounds. Complete healing occurred in 8 out of 20 patients (40%) while wound contraction was evident in the rest i.e.12 patients (60%) who all underwent split thickness grafting. The average duration of appearance of a raw area was higher with Argyreia Speciosa group as compared to Silver Sulphadiazine (28.5 days vs.24 days and was not statistically significant (t = 1.969, p>0.05). The mechanism of action of this agent has not been fully elucidated and further studies are required to validate the role of this topical herbal agent.
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