Abstract

GARASSINI, Miguel; FERNANDEZ, Saturnino; LECUNA, Pablo  and  VELASQUEZ, Lilibeth. Ingesta de medicina alternativa en pacientes con enfermedad hepática. Gen [online]. 2006, vol.60, n.4, pp.262-266. ISSN 0016-3503.

The use of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (MAC) is high at a world-wide level, a 3% of the adult population in the United States use some form of medical herbs, specifically those with hepatic disease. The hepatotoxic potential associated with MAC is not known, in part because the use of medical herbs or botanical products is underestimated in the general population, partly because there is a sub report of cases. With the objective to know the frequency of MAC use in patients with hepatic disease, we made a descriptive study, type "series of cases" in patients who attended the Hepatic consultation at the University Hospital of Caracas from February to May of 2005 with hepatic pathology of any etiology. We found that 53,25% of the patients consumed MAC, from these, 81,07% received alternative medicine with herbs prepared in the form of tea or infusion, and 18,93% received systemic medicine (adaptogens). The diagnoses of the patients were: hepatitis C, elevation of aminotransferases, hepatitis B, cirrhosis, fatty liver, chronic alcoholic hepatic disease, HAI, hepatic mass, hepatitis A, and hepatitis by CMV.

Keywords : Alternative and Complementary medicine; herbs; hepatic disease; adaptogens.

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