Hemicrania Health Dictionary

Blume

Family: Amaranthaceae.

Habitat: The temperate and subtropical Himalayas from Kishtwar to Sikkim at 1,200-3,200 m, Khasi hills.

Ayurvedic: Shveta Apaamaarga. (Rakta Apaamaarga is equated with Achyranthes rubra-fusca Hook. f. and A. verschaffeltii Lam., synonym Iresine herbstii Hook. f.)

Siddha/Tamil: Naayurivi.

Action: Astringent, diuretic, spasmolytic. Plant is given in whooping cough, roots in hemicrania.

A water-soluble oligosaccharide, composed of six glucose units and three mannose units, has been isolated from the roots. It enhanced immune response and prolonged survival time of mice bearing Ehrlich carcinoma.

The roots contain free oleanolic acid (0.096%) and its saponins (1.93%). An alcoholic extract of the root showed presence of amino acids, steroids, tri- terpenoids, alkaloids and coumarins. The seeds afforded achyranthin.

Extract of the plant—antimicrobial.... achyranthes bidentata

Forsk.

Synonym: A. caudatum Linn.

Family: Adiantaceae.

Habitat: The plains and the lower slopes of the hills in Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra.

Ayurvedic: Nilakantha-shikhaa, Mayurshikhaa, Vahrishikhaa.

Action: Used in hemicrania, cough, fever; externally in skin diseases; used as a substitute for A. capillus-veneris.

The fern yields adiantone, isoadian- tone, fernene, hentriacontane, hentri- acontanone-16, beta-sitosterol.... adiantum incisum

(Linn.) Willd.

Family: Mimosaceae.

Habitat: All over India, from the plains up to 900 m in the Himalayas; also in the Andamans.

English: Siris tree, East Indian walnut.

Ayurvedic: Shirisha, Bhandi, Bhandila, Shitapushpa, Mridu- pushpa, Kapitana (bark—dusty black).

Unani: Siras.

Siddha/Tamil: Vaagei.

Action: Antiseptic, antibacterial, antiallergic, antidermatosis, antidysenteric. Bark—used in bronchitis; bark and seeds in piles; root in hemicrania; flowers in cough, bronchitis, tropical pulmonary eosinophilia, and asthma. Pod— antiprotozoal.

Along with other therapeutic applications, The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India indicates the use of stembark in rhinitis, sinusitis and migraine.

Analysis of the plant revealed the presence of flavonoids, triterpenoids and triterpenoid saponins; oleano- lic acid, albigenic acid, albigenin and acacic acid. The bark contains 7-11% condensed tannin; also d-catechin and d-leucocyanidin.

Aqueous extract of the bark decreased histamine-induced broncho- spasm in guinea pigs.

Alcoholic extract of stembark contains cardenolide glycosides of digitox- in nature. It showed antidermatophyt- ic activity. Anthraquinone glycosides and its aglycone exhibited antibacterial activity.

A saponin from seeds exhibited spermicidal activity in animals. EtOH (50%) extract of pods was found to be spermicidal against rat and human spermatozoa at 2% concentration.

The therapeutic properties of Albizia julibrissin Durazz, Pink Siris, found in the outer Himalayas from the Indus eastwards to Sikkim, are the same as those of A. lebbeck.

Dosage: Stembark—3-6 g powder.

20-50 g for decoction. (API

Vol. III.)... albizia lebbeck

Lour.

Synonym: C. minima (Linn.) A.Br. & Asch.

Family: Compositae; Asteraceae.

Habitat: In damp places throughout the plains and low hills in India.

English: Sneezewort.

Ayurvedic: Kshavaka, Chhikkini, Chhikkikaa.

Folk: Nak-chhikani.

Action: Used for the treatment of rhinitis, sinusitis, nasopharyngeal tumors and obstructions, asthma and cold; also used in hemicrania.

The plant extract showed a good an- titussive and expectorant activity on mice. The flavonoids, sesquiterpenes and amide exhibited significant antial- lergy activity in passive cutaneous anaphylaxis (PCA) test.... centipeda orbicularis

Hemidesmus indicus

Asclepiadaceae

San: Anantamulah, Sariba;

Hin: Anantamul, Magrabu;

Ben: Anantamul;

Mal: Nannari, Naruninti, Narunanti;

Tam: Nannari, Saribam;

Tel: Sugandipala;

Kan: Namadaballi

Importance: Indian Sarasaparilla or Country Sarasaparilla is a climbing slender plant with twining woody stems and a rust-coloured bark. The roots are useful in vitiated conditions of pitta, burning sensation, leucoderma, leprosy, skin diseases, pruritus, asthma, bronchitis, hyperdipsia, opthalmopathy, hemicrania, epileptic fits, dyspepsia, helminthiasis, diarrhoea, dysentery, haemorrhoids, strangury, leucorrhoea, syphilis, abcess, arthralgia, fever and general debility. The leaves are useful in vomiting, wounds and leucoderma. The stems are bitter, diaphoretic and laxative and are useful in inflammations, cerebropathy, hepatopathy, nephropathy, syphilis, metropathy, leucoderma, odontalgia, cough and asthma. The latex is good for conjunctivitis (Warrier et al, 1995). The important formulations using the drug are Saribadyasava, Pindataila, Vidaryadi lehya, Draksadi kasaya, Jatyadi ghrita, etc. (Sivarajan et al, 1994). The Hemidesmus root powdered and mixed with cow’s milk is given with much benefit in the case of strangury. In the form of syrup, it has demulcent and diuretic proportions. The root, roasted in plantain leaves, then beaten into a mass with cumin and sugar and mixed with ghee is a household remedy in genito-urinary diseases. The hot infusion of the root-bark with milk and sugar is a good alterative tonic especially for children in cases of chronic cough and diarrhoea (Nadkarni, 1998). It has been successfully used in the cure of venereal diseases where American Sarasaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis Linn.) has failed. Native doctors utilize it in nephritic complaints and for sore mouths of children (Grieve and Leyel, 1992).

Distribution: Hemidesmus is distributed throughout India, the Moluccas and Sri Lanka.

Botany: Hemidesmus indicus (Linn.) R. Br. syn. Periploca indica Linn. belongs to the family Asclepiadaceae. It is a perennial, slender, laticiferous, twining or prostrate, wiry shrub with woody rootstock and numerous slender, terete stems having thickened nodes. Leaves are simple, opposite, very variable from elliptic-oblong to linear-lanceolate, variegated with white above and silvery white and pubescent beneath. Flowers are greenish purple crowded in sub-sessile cymes in the opposite leaf-axils. Fruits are slender follicles, cylindrical, 10cm long, tapering to a point at the apex. Seeds are flattened, black, ovate-oblong and coma silvery white. The tuberous root is dark-brown, coma silvery white, tortuous with transversely cracked and longitudinally fissured bark. It has a strong central vasculature and a pleasant smell and taste (Warrier et al, 1995).

The Ayurvedic texts mention two varieties, viz. a krsna or black variety and a sveta or white variety (Aiyer, 1951) which together constitute the pair, Saribadvayam. The drug is known as Sariba. Svetasariba is H. indicus. Two plants, namely, Ichnocarpus fructescens (Apocynaceae) known as pal-valli in vernacular and Cryptolepis buchanani (Asclepidaceae) known as Katupalvalli (Rheeds, 1689) are equated with black variety or Krsnasariba (Chunekar, 1982; Sharma, 1983).

Agrotechnology: Hemidesmus is propagated through root cuttings. The root cuttings of length 3-5cm can be planted in polybags or in the field. They can be planted in flat beds or on ridges. Planting is done usually at a spacing of 50x20cm. Heavy application of organic manure is essential for good growth and root yield. Inorganic fertilizers are not usually applied. Frequent weeding and earthing up are required, as the plant is only slow growing. Provision of standards for twining will further improve the growth and yield of the plant.

Properties and activity: The twigs of the plant give a pregnane ester diglycoside named desinine. Roots give -sitosterol, 2-hydroxy-4-methoxy benzaldehyde, -amyrin, -amyrin and its acetate, hexatriacontane, lupeol octacosonate, lupeol and its acetate. Leaves, stem and root cultures give cholesterol, campesterol, -sitosterol and 16-dehydro-pregnenolone. Leaves and flowers also give flavonoid glycosides rutin, hyperoside and iso-quercitin (Husain et al,1992). “Hemidesmine”- a crystallizible principle is found in the volatile oil extracted from roots. Some suggest that it is only a stearoptene. It also contains some starch, saponin and in the suberous layer, tannic acid (Grieve and Leyel, 1992). The root is alterative, febrifuge, antileucorrhoeic, antisyphilitic, demulcent, diaphoretic, diuretic, tonic, galactogenic, antidote for scorpion-sting and snake-bite, antidiarrhoeal, blood purifier, antirheumatic and aperitive. Essential oil from root is anti-bacterial and the plant is antiviral (Husain et al, 1992).... indian sarasaparilla

The word migraine derives from HEMICRANIA, the Greek for half a skull, and is a common condition characterised by recurring intense headaches. It is much more usual in women than in men and affects around 10 per cent of the population. It has been de?ned as ‘episodic headache accompanied by visual or gastrointestinal disturbances, or both, attacks lasting hours with total freedom between episodes’.

It usually begins at puberty – although young children can be affected – and tends to stop in middle age: in women, for example, attacks often cease after MENOPAUSE. It frequently disappears during pregnancy. The disorder tends to run in families. In susceptible individuals, attacks may be provoked by a wide variety of causes including: anxiety, emotion, depression, shock, and excitement; physical and mental fatigue; prolonged focusing on computer, television or cinema screens; noise, especially loud and high-pitched sounds; certain foods – such as chocolate, cheese, citrus fruits, pastry; alcohol; prolonged lack of food; irregular meals; menstruation and the pre-menstrual period.

Anything that can provoke a headache in the ordinary individual can probably precipitate an attack in a migrainous subject. It seems as if there is an inherited predispostion that triggers a mechanism whereby in the migrainous subject, the headache and the associated sickness persist for hours, a whole day or even longer.

The precise cause is not known, but the generally accepted view is that in susceptible individuals, one or other of these causes produces spasm or constriction of the blood vessels of the brain. This in turn is followed by dilatation of these blood vessels which also become more permeable and so allow ?uid to pass out into the surrounding tissues. This combination of dilatation and outpouring of ?uid is held to be responsible for the headache.

Two types of migraine have been recognised: classical and common. The former is relatively rare and the headache is preceded by a slowly extending area of blindness in one or both eyes, usually accompanied by intermittent ‘lights’. The phenomenon lasts for up to 30 minutes and is followed by a bad, often unilateral headache with nausea, sometimes vomiting and sensitivity to light. Occasionally, passing neurological symptoms such as weakness in a limb may accompany the attack. The common variety has similar but less severe symptoms. It consists of an intense headache, usually situated over one or other eye. The headache is usually preceded by a feeling of sickness and disturbance of sight. In 15–20 per cent of cases this disturbance of sight takes the form of bright lights: the so-called AURA of migraine. The majority of attacks are accompanied by vomiting. The duration of the headache varies, but in the more severe cases the victim is usually con?ned to bed for 24 hours.

Treatment consists, in the ?rst place, of trying to avoid any precipitating factor. Patients must ?nd out which drug, or drugs, give them most relief, and they must always carry these about with them wherever they go. This is because it is a not uncommon experience to be aware of an attack coming on and to ?nd that there is a critical quarter of an hour or so during which the tablets are e?ective. If not taken within this period, they may be ine?ective and the unfortunate victim ?nds him or herself prostrate with headache and vomiting. In addition, sufferers should immediately lie down; at this stage a few hours’ rest may prevent the development of a full attack.

When an attack is fully developed, rest in bed in a quiet, darkened room is essential; any loud noise or bright light intensi?es the headache or sickness. The less food that is taken during an attack the better, provided that the individual drinks as much ?uid as he or she wants. Group therapy, in which groups of around ten migrainous subjects learn how to relax, is often of help in more severe cases, whilst in others the injection of a local anaesthetic into tender spots in the scalp reduces the number of attacks. Drug treatment can be e?ective and those a?icted by migraine may ?nd a particular drug or combination of drugs more suitable than others. ANALGESICS such as PARACETAMOL, aspirin and CODEINE phosphate sometimes help. A combination of buclizine hydrochloride and analgesics, taken when the visual aura occurs, prevents or diminishes the severity of an attack in some people. A commonly used remedy for the condition is ergotamine tartrate, which causes the dilated blood vessels to contract, but this must only be taken under medical supervision. In many cases METOCLOPRAMIDE (an antiemetic), followed ten minutes later by three tablets of either aspirin or paracetamol, is e?ective if taken early in an attack. In milder attacks, aspirin, with or without codeine and paracetamol, may be of value. SUMATRIPTAN (5-hydroxytryptamine [5HT1] AGONIST – also known as a SEROTONIN agonist) is of value for acute attacks. It is used orally or by subcutaneous injection, but should not be used for patients with ischaemic heart disease. Naratriptan is another 5HT1 agonist that is an e?ective treatment for acute attacks; others are almotriptan, rizariptan and zolmitriptan. Some patients ?nd beta blockers such as propranolol a valuable prophylactic.

People with migraine and their relatives can obtain help and guidance from the Migraine Action Association.... migraine

D. Don.

Synonym: R. aeruginosum Hk. f.

Family: Ericaceae.

Habitat: Throughout the Himalayas at altitudes of 2,400-5,200 m.

Folk: Chimal (Kumaon, Nepal), Gagger vurmi, Nichnai (Kashmir). Cherailu, Taalis-far.

Action: Leaves—used in chronic rheumatism and sciatica. As a snuff, in colds and hemicrania.

The leaves gave a toxic substance which resembles andromedotoxin; besides ericolin, ursolic acid, alpha-amy- rin, friedelin, epi-friedelinol, campan- ulin, quercitin. The pigments of flowers contain myricetin and quercetin.

Petroleum ether and chloroform extracts of leaves, stems and flowers lower blood pressure in cats and inhibit intestinal movements in rabbits.... rhododendron campanulatum

(Lam.) Viogt.

Synonym: T. palmata Roxb. T. lepiniana (Naud.) Cogn. Involucraria lepiniana Naud.

Family: Cucurbitaceae.

Habitat: Throughout India, in moist places.

Ayurvedic: Indravaaruni (red var.), Vishaalaa, Mahaakaala, Mahendra-vaaruni.

Folk: Mahkaar, Maakaal, Laal Indraayana, Kondal.

Action: Same as that of Citrullus colocynthis. The fruits are poisonous. The seed extract show haemagglutinating activity. Fruit— cathartic, antiasthmatic (the fruit is smoked in asthma and lung diseases), anti-inflammatory (used for rheumatic affections, weakness of limbs, dental diseases, hemicrania).

The root gave tetrahydroxypenta- cyclic triterpenoid, trichotetrol. Cy- clotrichosantol and cycloeucalenol have been isolated from the leaves.... trichosanthes bracteata