MANAGING PREOPERATIVE USE OF HERBAL MEDICATIONS

P. Daliu¹

¹ Department of Pharmacology, Albanian University, Tirana, Albania

Correspondence to:

Journal of Orthopedics 2024 May-August; 16(2): 87-94

Received: 10 July 2024 Accepted: 7 August 2024

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Abstract

Herbal medicine is an increasingly common form of alternative therapy all over the world. Most herbal products are considered dietary supplements and thus are not regulated as medicines. During the preoperative evaluation, physicians should explicitly elicit and document a history of herbal medication use. Some herbal medications have potentially harmful side effects as well as adverse interactions with conventional drugs, especially before the preoperative conditions. Physicians should be familiar with the potential perioperative effects of the commonly used herbal medications to prevent, recognize, and treat potentially serious problems associated with their use and discontinuation. The purpose of this article was to review the recent literature on the potential risks of commonly used herbal medications: Echinacea, Ephedra, Garlic, Ginkgo Biloba, St. John’s Wort, Ginseng, Kava, Valeriana, and bring focus to new molecular pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic evidence and mechanisms.

Keywords: echinacea, ephedra, garlic, ginkgo, ginseng, herbal medicine, Kava, preoperative assessment, risk interactions, safety, St. John’s wort, Valerian