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Abstract
From the 16th up into the 18th century botanical and medicinal knowledge in Europe
was documented and spread in magnificently illustrated herbals. For the most part
modern science has neglected this source of knowledge and old remedies have not been
systematically evaluated pharmacologically.
Rheumatic disorders and chronic inflammatory and degenerative diseases of the musculoskeletal
system were chosen in an attempt to discuss remedies described in the old herbals
in the viewpoint of modern science.
Five of the most important European herbals of the 16th and 17th century were searched
for terms related to rheumatic diseases, and plants and recipes described for their
treatment. An extensive search of the scientific data banks Medline and SciFinder
scholar was done to find recent results concerning the phytochemistry and possible
antiphlogistic activities of the plants.
Sixty-three plants were identified in the herbals for this indication. More than half
of them have shown in vitro or in vivo antiphlogistic activities.
European herbals may be a valuable source of information for the selection of plants
for focussed screening programmes. Information contained in these herbals should be
explored in a systematic manner.