The use of medicinal plants and their possible drug interactions with allopathic drugs in a metropolitan region of Curitiba-PR

The use of medicinal plants constitutes a popular practice and knowledge, and plays a fundamental role in communities, especially concerning health care. The easy accessibility of medicinal plants causes the individual to use concomitant allopathic medicines without any professional guidance. This form of self-medication can inhibit or intensify the effect of medications, so this association requires caution. Aim: To survey the medicinal plants used and their possible drug interactions between synthetic drugs and medicinal plants, including those of dental properties, employed by users of the Jardim das Gracas Health Center, Colombo-PR. Methodology: Qualitative study of a descriptive approach; Composed of 31 research participants, chosen at random, according to the criterion: belong to the area of coverage of the UC, and accept to participate in the research. The data were obtained in three stages: 1st home visit, where the research participants answered a questionnaire, 2nd was collected the plants used for botanical identification were collected, 3rd in the medical records, data on the prescribed drugs were analyzed. Results: 77.4% of the research participants used medicinal plants, 33.3% were over 45 years of age, 74.2% were women, 95.8% took medication associated with plant use, 62.5% used plants as medicine, the most used part was the leaf (61.53%), preparation through boiling (75%). The most cited plant was guaco (10.4%), followed by chamomile (9.6%) and lemon (6.4%), and those related to dentistry were: rosemary, arnica, alfavaca, chamomile, fennel, ginger, spearmint, clove and melissa. We concluded that most of the participants used plants concomitantly with allopathic medication, mainly  diseases, without any guidance from health professionals. A total of 14 allopathy drugs, and 13 medicinal plants which may present possible risk for drug interaction, were observed.