[Safety and risk factor analysis on Polygoni Multiflori Radix base on ancient traditional Chinese medicine...

Traditional Chinese medicine Polygoni Multiflori Radix is dried roots of Polygonaceae Polygortum multiflorum Thunb. Its clinical application records were first discovered in literatures of the Tang dynasty. The origins, efficacy, toxicity, processing and taboos of Polygoni Multiflori Radix have been discussed in many ancient herb literatures. In recent years, with the increase in the public awareness in health, Polygoni Multiflori Radix admits preparations have been more widely applied in the treatment and prevention of diseases. However, there have been more and more reports about Polygoni Multiflori Radix induced liver injury, the safety of Polygoni Multiflori Radix has increasingly attracted attention of the society. In this paper, the authors summarized and analyzed the toxicity and medication risk factors of Polygoni Multiflori Radix recorded in ancient herb literatures, and proposed that more attention shall be given to the effect of the planting and processing methods on the components and toxicity of Polygoni Multiflori Radix in safety studies, which provides clues for the further studies.