Uso de fitoterápicos e plantas medicinais por pacientes atendidos nos ambulatórios de reumatologia do Hospital Universitário Alcides Carneiro, Campina Grande - Paraíba.

Abstract

Brazil is a country with one of the largest biodiversities in the world. Thus, over the years strategies have been implemented to take advantage of this potential for health, through medicinal plants and herbal medicines. Up to 2006, there were 2073 establishments producing these inputs in the country, and in Paraíba the number was 123. Rheumatic diseases reach about 6.4% of the Brazilian population and 6.9% of the population of Paraíba. They usually cause a lot of pain, some have no cure, the treatment is expensive and has many side effects. Against this background, many patients end up looking for alternative treatments to help deal with these pathologies. Therefore, the prevalence of the use of medicinal plants and herbal medicines, among the patients attended at the ambulatories of rheumatology of the Hospital Universitário Alcides Carneiro (Campina Grande – Paraíba), was evaluated. This was a quantitative, observational and cross-sectional study, carried out through the application of semi-structured questionnaires, in patients with a diagnosis of rheumatic disease treated in the referred service between July and September 2016. The sample was non-probabilistic for convenience, composed of 79 people. Women were more prevalent (83.5%), rheumatoid arthritis (48.1%) was the most common rheumatic disease, and the most common symptom was pain (93.7%). 26.6% reported use of medicinal plants or herbal medicine, and 43% said they preferred herbal medicines to allopathic medications (16,5%). In 62.5% of medicinal plant citations, the use was correlated to analgesia. The leaf was the most used part (37.5%) and the infusion was the most reported preparation form (41.6%). The results are corroborated by the literature, in which female prevalence in rheumatology patients is verified, as well as the search for alternative therapies to alleviate pain symptoms as one of the main motivations. The present work contributes to the knowledge of the topic, considering the relevant prevalence of use in the study population, and possible beneficial economic effects and few side effects that can be achieved with investments in this type of therapy, in addition to contribute to its use in a rational way.