Ernst E
Department of Complementary Medicine, School of Postgraduate Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Exeter, 25 Victoria Park Road, Exeter EX2 4NT, UK.
Br J Dermatol. 2000 Nov;143(5):923-9. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2133.2000.03822.x.
Herbal treatments are becoming increasingly popular, and are often used for dermatological conditions. Thus dermatologists should know about their potential to cause adverse events. This review is aimed at addressing this area in a semisystematic fashion. Some agents, particularly Chinese herbal creams, have been shown repeatedly to be adulterated with corticosteroids. Virtually all herbal remedies can cause allergic reactions and several can be responsible for photosensitization. Some herbal medicines, in particular Ayurvedic remedies, contain arsenic or mercury that can produce typical skin lesions. Other popular remedies that can cause dermatological side-effects include St John's Wort, kava, aloe vera, eucalyptus, camphor, henna and yohimbine. Finally, there are some herbal treatments used specifically for dermatological conditions, e.g. Chinese oral herbal remedies for atopic eczema, which have the potential to cause systemic adverse effects. It is concluded that adverse effects of herbal medicines are an important albeit neglected subject in dermatology, which deserves further systematic investigation.
草药治疗正变得越来越流行，并且常用于皮肤病。因此皮肤科医生应该了解其导致不良事件的可能性。本综述旨在以半系统的方式探讨这一领域。一些制剂，特别是中草药乳膏，已多次被证明掺有皮质类固醇。几乎所有草药都可引起过敏反应，有几种还可导致光敏反应。一些草药，尤其是阿育吠陀疗法的草药，含有可产生典型皮肤损害的砷或汞。其他可引起皮肤副作用的常用疗法包括圣约翰草、卡瓦、芦荟、桉树、樟脑、指甲花和育亨宾。最后，有一些专门用于皮肤病的草药治疗，例如用于特应性湿疹的口服中药，有可能引起全身不良反应。结论是，草药的不良反应在皮肤科是一个重要但被忽视的课题，值得进一步系统研究。
