Medicinal plants used for ophthalmological problems in Navarra (Spain)

Several plants have been found to have effective against number of ophthalmological problems in Navarra.

Information was collected using semi-structured ethnobotanical interviews with 686 informants in 267 locations. In order to confirm the pharmacological application of the uses more cited by the informants, a literature review was conducted.

A total of 57 pharmaceutical uses were reported, for 19 plants and 13 families, mainly represented by Asteraceae. The most frequently used parts were inflorescences, flowers, aerial parts, leaves and flowered aerial parts. The related affections fell into eleven categories: bloodshot eyes, watery eyes and wounds, improve vision, irrited eyelids, rheums and styes, tired eyes, conjunctivitis, eyewash, ocular problems in general. The most cited plants were: Chamaemelum nobile (L.) All., Santolina chamaecyparissus L. ssp. squarrosa (DC.) Nyman, Sambucus nigra L. ssp. nigra, Rosa agrestis Savi and Calendula officinalis L. None of them have been pharmacologically validated by Official International Organisms. From the therapeutic point of view, Allium sativum L., Foeniculum vulgare Mill., C. officinalis, and S. chamaecyparissus ssp. squarrosa deserve special attention, because ethnobotanical and pharmacological studies suggest that these medicinal plants are effective for ophthalmological problems.

The present study constitutes a good basis for further phytochemical and pharmacological research of these four plants, which could be of interest in the design of new inexpensive, effective and safe drugs. The remaining plants are needed to be screened through standard pharmacological and clinical procedures for their activities.