HERBAL MONOGRAPHS TRAVELLER'S JOY/769EFFECTS
Eleuthero has astringent and diuretic properties.INDICATIONS AND USAGE
Unproven Uses: Trailing Arbutus is used for urinary tract
conditions.PRECAUTIONS AND ADVERSE REACTIONS
Health risks or side effects following the proper administra-
tion of designated therapeutic dosages are not recorded.
Nausea and vomiting can also occur with stomach sensitivity
in children. Liver damage, cachexia, hemolytic anemia and
depigmentation of the hair is possible with long-term use of
the drug.OVERDOSAGE
Overdosages could lead to inflammatory reactions of the
mucous membranes of the bladder and urinary passages,
accompanied by strangury and possible blood in the urine.DOSAGE
Mode of Administration: Trailing Arbutus is available as an
infusion or extract for internal use.LITERATURE
Kern W, List PH, Horhammer L (Hrsg.), Hagers Handbuch der
Pharmazeutischen Praxis, 4. Aufl., Bde. 1-8, Springer Verlag
Berlin, Heidelberg, New York, 1969.Traveller's Joy
Clematis vitalbaDESCRIPTION
Medicinal Parts: The medicinal parts of the plant are the
fresh leaves.Flower and Fruit: The flowers are arranged in leafy cymes.
The blossoms are small and white with 4 downy, revolute or
splayed bracts. The stamens and ovaries are numerous. The
fruit is a red-brown, long-tailed nut.Leaves, Stem and Root: The plant grows to about 1.5 to 5 m
high. The leaves are petiolate and 5-pinnate. The leaflets are
ovate or slightly cordate, acute and lobed. The petioles are
clinging and the stems climbing, grooved, at first leafy then
woody.Characteristics: The flowers have a slight scent resembling
white thorn. The plant is poisonous if ingested in large
amounts.Habitat: The plant is indigenous to Europe.
ACTIONS AND PHARMACOLOGY
COMPOUNDS
Protoanemonine-forming agents: In the freshly harvested
plant, it is presumably the glycoside ranunculin that changes
enzymatically when the plant is cut into small pieces, and
probably also when it is dried. It then changes into the
pungent, volatile protoanemonine that is severely irritating to
skin and mucous membranes but quickly dimerizes to
anemonine; when dried, the plant is not capable of protoane-
monine formation.SaponinsEFFECTS
No information is available.INDICATIONS AND USAGE
Unproven Uses: The drug causes blistering and was formerly
used to treat diseases of the male genitals, as well as for
poorly healing wounds. Today, it is used in small doses, both
internally and externally, for migraine.PRECAUTIONS AND ADVERSE REACTIONS
No health hazards or side effects are known in conjunction
with the proper administration of designated therapeutic
dosages of the dehydrated drug.Extended skin contact with the freshly harvested, bruised
plant can lead to treatment-resistant blisters and cauteriza-
tions due to the release of protoanemonine, which is severely
irritating to skin and mucous membranes. If taken internally,
severe irritation to the gastrointestinal tract, combined with
colic, diarrhea and irritation of the urinary drainage passages,
are possible. Symptomatic treatment for external contact
should consist of irrigation with diluted potassium perman-
ganate solution followed by mucilage.OVERDOSAGE
Ingestion of the drug should be treated with gastric lavage
followed by activated charcoal. Death by asphyxiation
following the intake of large quantities of protoanemonine-
forming plants has been observed in animal experiments.
The toxicity of this plant is less than that of many other
Ranunculaceae (Anemones nemorosae) due to the, relatively
low levels of protoanemonine-forming agents.DOSAGE
Mode of Administration: The drug is used topically and is
also available in alcoholic extracts.LITERATURE
Bonora A et al., PH 26:2277. 1987.
Frohne D, Pfander HJ: Giftpflanzen - Ein Handbuch fur
Apotheker, Toxikologen und Biologen, 4. Aufl., Wiss.
Verlagsges. mbH Stuttgart 1997.