RESUMO
Introduction Astragalus species have been widely used in Chinese herbal medicine to treat gastrointestinal and inflammatory disorders. This study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy of Astragalus sarcocolla (ASE) and to rationalize its medicinal use as an antispasmodic drug for the treatment of spasmodic gastrointestinal and inflammatory disorders associated with increased intestinal motility. Methods The ethanolic extract of ASE was studied to examine its antispasmodic effect on the isolated rabbit ileum preparations, and the contractions were recorded on PowerLab (ADInstruments, Sydney, Australia). Results ASE was able to inhibit spontaneous ileum contractions. It also completely inhibited K+ (25 mM)-induced contractions but was unable to inhibit high K+ (80 mM)-induced sustained contractions. Pretreatment of the tissue with glibenclamide, a potassium channel blocker, caused a rightward shift of the dose-response curve when stimulated with K+ (25 mM) in the presence of an increasing concentration of the extract. Verapamil at very low doses inhibited both the 25 mM and 80 mM K+-induced contractions. Conclusion The results of our study demonstrated the spasmolytic activity of ASE with the potential mechanism of activation of K+ATP, which provides a strong basis for its medicinal use in motility and inflammatory disorders of the intestine.
RESUMO
Introduction Acid peptic disease is a common disorder, affecting millions of people worldwide. Its pharmacological management includes proton pump inhibitors, H2 blockers, antacids and mucosal protective agents. Multiple studies in Pakistan have shown increased tendency of population for self-medication. This has serious implications regarding false diagnoses, misuse of drugs and occurrence of adverse effects. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of self-medication among the people of Manawa, Lahore. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted between January 2019 and June 2019 amongst the general population of Manawa, Lahore. Patients with the typical presentation of acid peptic disease were included in the study. A total of 500 people, fulfilling the inclusion criteria, were chosen. A questionnaire form was adapted from similar studies performed on self-medication. It was divided into two parts. First part included the social and demographic data while the second part consisted of details about the prevalence and factors related to the practice of self-medication amongst acid peptic disease (APD) patients. The data collected was transcribed into SPSS 22.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY) for statistical analysis. All the categorical variables were analyzed as frequencies and percentages. No statistical comparisons were done as it was a descriptive, exploratory study. Results Out of 500 participants, 404 were females and 96 were males. Most of them were middle-aged (53%) and illiterate (68.4%). Number of participants who practiced self-medication was found to be 313 (62.6%). The highest prevalence of self-medication was found for proton pump inhibitors (43.1%), followed by antacids (23.6%), unknown homeopathic and Hakeem medicine (20.4%) and H2 blockers (12.8%). The most common reasons stated for self-medication included inability to afford medical consultation (44.2%), lack of knowledge about drug side effects (35.8%), easy access to Hakeem and homeopathic medicines (27.6% and 4.8%, respectively) and inaccessibility to doctors (19.2%). Conclusion A large majority of people in Manawa practise self-medication for acid peptic disease, owing to multiple reasons.
