scholarly journals Possibility of potential herbal-drug interactions in elderly population

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 128-130
Author(s):  
Huda Kafeel ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Drug Interactions ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Conventional Medicine ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Dynamic Interactions ◽  
Prefer Treatment

Medicines are variable in composition and quality, which may have an impact on their interaction profile still as a result of the reliability of reports regarding them. As such, the potential for herb-drug interactions increases in elderly population. For this instance we conducted a survey based study in which 208 patients were surveyed belonging to different areas of Karachi. These people were of different age groups ranging from 40-60 years old. They were asked to answer a face to face questionnaire based on the concurrent use of the conventional medicine and herbal drugs and their possible interaction based side effects. Our results sho ws that out of 208, 124(59.6%) volunteers prefer treatment with herbal and allopathic medicines, 138 (66.3%) use medications on daily basis while 70 (33.7%) don’t use on daily basis. And 56 volunteers were at high risk of potential herb-drug interaction, among them 32.7% have dynamic interactions and 21.2% have kinetic interactions in their medication regime. Out of 208 volunteers 89% were experiencing adverse effects (self reported). Since a significant number of herb-drug interactions were detected in elderly patients, it is suggested that health care professionals and consumers should be aware of the potential herb-drug interactions and health care professionals should question and advice their patients on their use of herbal medicines.

The potential impact of the use of homeopathic and herbal remedies on monitoring the safety of prescription products

2005 ◽  
Vol 24 (5) ◽  
pp. 219-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
K N Woodward
Keyword(s):  
Herbal Medicine ◽  
Drug Interactions ◽  
Adverse Reactions ◽  
Conventional Medicine ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Adverse Event Reporting ◽  
Herbal Remedies ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Conventional Drug ◽  
Potential Impact

The purpose of this paper is to explore the possibility that adverse reactions and drug interactions arising from the use of homeopathic and herbal medicines could lead to confusion when adverse reactions to conventional medicines are reported. An extensive literature review was conducted on the occurrence of adverse reactions and drug interactions following the use of homeopathic or herbal remedies, and the potential for these to confound adverse event reporting to conventional medicines considered. The survey demonstrates the potential for herbal remedies and homeopathic products, to produce adverse drug reactions or drug interactions, and shows the scope for potential for confusion with those arising from conventional medicines. There is a need for greater awareness that adverse reactions apparently due to a conventional medicine, might in reality be due to a herbal medicine or a drug interaction between a herbal medicine and a conventional drug, particularly when a health professional is unaware of the extent of a patient's selfmedication with alternative therapies.

Pseudoneurologic Syndromes

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aziz Shaibani
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Structural Damage ◽  
Neuromuscular Disorders ◽  
Brain Mri ◽  
Video Clip ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Physical Symptoms ◽  
The Body ◽  
Sensory Loss

The term functional has almost replaced psychogenic in the neuromuscular literature for two reasons. It implies a disturbance of function, not structural damage; therefore, it defies laboratory testing such as MRIS, electromyography (EMG), and nerve conduction study (NCS). It is convenient to draw a parallel to the patients between migraine and brain tumors, as both cause headache, but brain MRI is negative in the former without minimizing the suffering of the patient. It is a “software” and not a “hardware” problem. It avoids irritating the patient by misunderstanding the word psychogenic which to many means “madness.”The cause of this functional impairment may fall into one of the following categories:• Conversion reaction: conversion of psychological stress to physical symptoms. This may include paralysis, hemisensory or distal sensory loss, or conversion spasms. It affects younger age groups.• Somatization: chronic multiple physical and cognitive symptoms due to chronic stress. It affects older age groups.• Factions disorder: induced real physical symptoms due to the need to be cared for, such as injecting oneself with insulin to produce hypoglycemia.• Hypochondriasis: overconcern about body functions such as suspicion of ALS due to the presence of rare fasciclutations that are normal during stress and after ingestion of a large amount of coffee. Medical students in particular are targets for this disorder.The following points are to be made on this topic. FNMD should be diagnosed by neuromuscular specialists who are trained to recognize actual syndrome whether typical or atypical. Presentations that fall out of the recognition pattern of a neuromuscular specialist, after the investigations are negative, they should be considered as FNMDs. Sometimes serial examinations are useful to confirm this suspicion. Psychatrists or psychologists are to be consulted to formulate a plan to discover the underlying stress and to treat any associated psychiatric disorder or psychological aberration. Most patients think that they are stressed due to the illness and they fail to connect the neuromuscular manifestations and the underlying stress. They offer shop around due to lack of satisfaction, especially those with somatization disorders. Some patients learn how to imitate certain conditions well, and they can deceive health care professionals. EMG and NCS are invaluable in revealing FNMD. A normal needle EMG of a weak muscles mostly indicates a central etiology (organic or functional). Normal sensory responses of a severely numb limb mean that a lesion is preganglionic (like roots avulsion, CISP, etc.) or the cause is central (a doral column lesion or functional). Management of FNMD is difficult, and many patients end up being chronic cases that wander into clinics and hospitals seeking solutions and exhausting the health care system with unnecessary expenses.It is time for these disorders to be studied in detail and be classified and have criteria set for their diagnosis so that they will not remain diagnosed only by exclusion. This chapter will describe some examples of these disorders. A video clip can tell the story better than many pages of writing. Improvement of digital cameras and electronic media has improved the diagnosis of these conditions, and it is advisable that patients record some of their symptoms when they happen. It is not uncommon for some Neuromuscular disorders (NMDs), such as myasthenia gravis (MG), small fiber neuropathy, and CISP, to be diagnosed as functional due to the lack of solid physical findings during the time of the examination. Therefore, a neuromuscular evaluation is important before these disorders are labeled as such. Some patients have genuine NMDs, but the majority of their symptoms are related to what Joseph Marsden called “sickness behavior.” A patient with carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS) may unconsciously develop numbness of the entire side of the body because he thinks that he may have a stroke.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine/Integrative Medicine Approaches

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kalpana D. Shere-Wolfe
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Conventional Medicine ◽  
Health Care Systems ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Care Systems ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Alternative Medications ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices, and products that are not currently considered part of conventional medicine. If a non-mainstream practice is used together with conventional medicine, it is considered “complementary.” If a non-mainstream practice is used in place of conventional medicine, it is considered “alternative.” Many patients use CAM approaches to their care. Often, patients do not disclose what methods they are using, and providers may have little knowledge of the effects of alternative medications. Interactions with antiretroviral therapy and other medications are important to the care of the patient. Physicians need to routinely ask about CAM use, particularly herbal medicines and supplements.

scholarly journals Drug Interactions In Elderly Population In Primary Health Care

2013 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. A69
Author(s):  
N. Tomic ◽  
A. Sabo ◽  
B. Milijasevic ◽  
S. Vukmirovic
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Primary Health Care ◽  
Drug Interactions ◽  
Elderly Population ◽  
Primary Health

scholarly journals Interface between orthodox and traditional medicine and alternative paradigm for integrating orthodox and traditional health care in Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 079-084
Author(s):  
Amole O.O.
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Poverty Reduction ◽  
Conventional Medicine ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
African Region ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Traditional Health ◽  
Traditional Health Care ◽  
Different Cultures

Traditional medicine refers to the knowledge, skills and practices based on the theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures, used in the maintenance of health and in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement of physical and mental illness. Herbal treatments are the most form of traditional medicine and 70 – 80% of the African region has used a form as primary health care. There is little doubt that the use of herbal medicines is growing and one of the most problems found in medicinal plants is the absence of clinical, toxicological and pharmacological studies. Many African countries depend on herbal medicines because of their efficacy, affordability and availability. The future of African traditional medicine is bright if view in the context of service provision, increase of health care coverage, economic potential and poverty reduction. Formal recognition and integration of traditional medicine into conventional medicine would be of good advantage.

scholarly journals The use of traditional medicine by caregivers for children under the age of five years as health seeking behaviour

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Shanitha Pillay
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Traditional Medicine ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Conventional Medicine ◽  
Integrated Management ◽  
Total Sample ◽  
Traditional Healers ◽  
Health Seeking ◽  
Potential Threat ◽  
Sick Children

Child health has always been a global priority for decades; however, despite efforts to reduce the child mortality statistics, 5.9 million children under the age of five years have deceased in 2015. IMCI guidelines are used to assess, classify and treat sick children under the age of five years, however, despite the prevalent use of traditional medicine for this age group of children, the guidelines excludes the use of traditional medicine, hence the tendency exists to ignore such questions being asked. It is this gap in the history taking pertaining to sick children seeking health care at clinics that the researcher has identified, therefore, this study is intended to highlight the use of traditional medicine in children under the age of five years. The researcher’s methodology is a quantitative descriptive study by means of a self- developed structured questionnaire which was handed out to 183 caregivers attending a Gateway Clinic and 324 caregivers at Paediatric Out – Patient Department. The total sample size was 507 caregivers of children under the age of five years. Data was analysed using SPSS version 17. The data derived from this study indicated that although most caregivers would take their sick children to the clinic for first line treatment, there are a significant number who would rather use home remedies or seek care from traditional healers. The study reveals that 28.5% of caregivers were found to be administering traditional medicine with conventional medicine and 17.4% would do so concurrently. Evidence also revealed that 75.7% of the caregivers would disclose the use of traditional medicine for their children only if nurses enquired about it. Recommendations arising from the study findings are that the IMCI guidelines should incorporate a classification chart for use by health care professionals in order to identify children who were treated by traditional medicine preferably as “RED” - requiring urgent attention and possible admission to hospital, in view of the potential threat to life. Since the IMCI guidelines are also a teaching tool in nursing curricula, the assessment of sick children using traditional medicine will be incorporated into the formal teaching of nurses. Key words used were Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses, effects and use of traditional medicine on children.

scholarly journals Peer Support in Mental Health: Literature Review (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reham A Hameed Shalaby ◽  
Vincent I O Agyapong
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Peer Support ◽  
Health Care System ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Health Care Systems ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Care System

BACKGROUND A growing gap has emerged between people with mental illness and health care professionals, which in recent years has been successfully closed through the adoption of peer support services (PSSs). Peer support in mental health has been variously defined in the literature and is simply known as the help and support that people with lived experience of mental illness or a learning disability can give to one another. Although PSSs date back to several centuries, it is only in the last few decades that these services have formally evolved, grown, and become an integral part of the health care system. Debates around peer support in mental health have been raised frequently in the literature. Although many authors have emphasized the utmost importance of incorporating peer support into the health care system to instill hope; to improve engagement, quality of life, self-confidence, and integrity; and to reduce the burden on the health care system, other studies suggest that there are neutral effects from integrating PSSs into health care systems, with a probable waste of resources. OBJECTIVE In this general review, we aimed to examine the literature, exploring the evolution, growth, types, function, generating tools, evaluation, challenges, and the effect of PSSs in the field of mental health and addiction. In addition, we aimed to describe PSSs in different, nonexhaustive contexts, as shown in the literature, that aims to draw attention to the proposed values of PSSs in such fields. METHODS The review was conducted through a general search of the literature on MEDLINE, Google Scholar, EMBASE, Scopus, Chemical Abstracts, and PsycINFO. Search terms included peer support, peer support in mental health, social support, peer, family support, and integrated care. RESULTS There is abundant literature defining and describing PSSs in different contexts as well as tracking their origins. Two main transformational concepts have been described, namely, intentional peer support and transformation from patients to peer support providers. The effects of PSSs are extensive and integrated into different fields, such as forensic PSSs, addiction, and mental health, and in different age groups and mental health condition severity. Satisfaction of and challenges to PSS integration have been clearly dependent on a number of factors and consequently impact the future prospect of this workforce. CONCLUSIONS There is an internationally growing trend to adopt PSSs within addiction and mental health services, and despite the ongoing challenges, large sections of the current literature support the inclusion of peer support workers in the mental health care workforce. The feasibility and maintenance of a robust PSS in health care would only be possible through collaborative efforts and ongoing support and engagement from all health care practitioners, managers, and other stakeholders.

scholarly journals Peer Support in Mental Health: Literature Review

10.2196/15572 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. e15572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reham A Hameed Shalaby ◽  
Vincent I O Agyapong
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Lived Experience ◽  
Peer Support ◽  
Health Care System ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Health Care Systems ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Care System

Background A growing gap has emerged between people with mental illness and health care professionals, which in recent years has been successfully closed through the adoption of peer support services (PSSs). Peer support in mental health has been variously defined in the literature and is simply known as the help and support that people with lived experience of mental illness or a learning disability can give to one another. Although PSSs date back to several centuries, it is only in the last few decades that these services have formally evolved, grown, and become an integral part of the health care system. Debates around peer support in mental health have been raised frequently in the literature. Although many authors have emphasized the utmost importance of incorporating peer support into the health care system to instill hope; to improve engagement, quality of life, self-confidence, and integrity; and to reduce the burden on the health care system, other studies suggest that there are neutral effects from integrating PSSs into health care systems, with a probable waste of resources. Objective In this general review, we aimed to examine the literature, exploring the evolution, growth, types, function, generating tools, evaluation, challenges, and the effect of PSSs in the field of mental health and addiction. In addition, we aimed to describe PSSs in different, nonexhaustive contexts, as shown in the literature, that aims to draw attention to the proposed values of PSSs in such fields. Methods The review was conducted through a general search of the literature on MEDLINE, Google Scholar, EMBASE, Scopus, Chemical Abstracts, and PsycINFO. Search terms included peer support, peer support in mental health, social support, peer, family support, and integrated care. Results There is abundant literature defining and describing PSSs in different contexts as well as tracking their origins. Two main transformational concepts have been described, namely, intentional peer support and transformation from patients to peer support providers. The effects of PSSs are extensive and integrated into different fields, such as forensic PSSs, addiction, and mental health, and in different age groups and mental health condition severity. Satisfaction of and challenges to PSS integration have been clearly dependent on a number of factors and consequently impact the future prospect of this workforce. Conclusions There is an internationally growing trend to adopt PSSs within addiction and mental health services, and despite the ongoing challenges, large sections of the current literature support the inclusion of peer support workers in the mental health care workforce. The feasibility and maintenance of a robust PSS in health care would only be possible through collaborative efforts and ongoing support and engagement from all health care practitioners, managers, and other stakeholders.

scholarly journals Western and traditional medicine: Cultural beliefs and practices of South African Muslims with regard to Down Syndrome

2006 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tasneem Dangor ◽  
Eleanor Ross
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Down Syndrome ◽  
South African ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Cultural Beliefs ◽  
Herbal Medicines ◽  
Traditional Healers ◽  
Muslim Community ◽  
The South ◽  
Beliefs And Practices

The aim of the study was to investigate the beliefs and practices of caregivers and traditional healers within the South African Muslim community regarding Down syndrome. An exploratory-descriptive research design was utilized which incorporated individual interviews with 10 caregivers of persons with Down syndrome as well as 10 traditional healers from the South African Muslim community. Common beliefs emanating from both groups relating to the cause of Down syndrome included the notion that this condition was genetic in origin and that such children were perceived to be gifts from God. Others attributed Down syndrome to a punishment from God or the result of curses from people. Treatment included the use of inscriptions from the Quraan, water that had been prayed over and herbal medicines. Some caregivers seemed reluctant to approach western health care professionals due to negative past experiences. The main reasons for consulting traditional healers were cultural beliefs and pressure from family members, their holistic approach and the personal nature of their interventions. Collaboration between allopathic medicine and traditional healing was advocated by almost all of the traditional healers. These findings underline the need for culturally sensitive rehabilitation practices in speech-language pathology and audiology; and collaboration between western health care practitioners and traditional healers.

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