The wound healing effect of herbal ointments formulated with Napoleona imperialis

Abstract

The wound healing effect of herbal ointments formulated with Napoleona imperialis (NI) embedded in different ointment bases (anionic, cationic and non-ionic) has been evaluated in vivo using the excision wound healing model, on guinea pigs. Napoleona imperialis was extracted using methanol and the extract formulated as herbal ointments. The herbal ointments were used to treat wounds inflicted onexperimental guinea pigs. The wound healing effects of the formulations were compared to that of a standard antibiotic, Cicatrin^®. In all cases, there was a progressive decrease in wound area with time, indicating an efficacy of the formulations in healing the induced wounds. By the 16^th day, the ointment containing 100 mg/g of Napoleona imperialis in non-ionic emulsifying ointment base showed 100 % healing. The wound areas in the animals treated with the standard antibiotic, Cicatrin^® showed a 100% healing by the 19^th day, indicating that the plant extract, at that given concentration, had a better wound healing property than the standard antibiotic.

Keywords: wounds, healing, herbal ointments, Napoleona imperialis, Cicatrin^®

Journal of Pharmaceutical and Allied Sciences Vol. 3(1) 2006: 294-299