Wound Healing Property of Leaf Extracts of Bixa orellana L. (Atsuete) and Artemisia vulgaris (Hilbas) on Cavia porcellus (Guinea Pig)

Bixa orellana (Atsuete) and Artemisia vulgaris (Hilbas) has been evaluated for wound healing activity using the excision wound healing model on guinea pigs. The leaves were extracted using ethanol as extracting solvent. Twenty (20) guinea pigs were used and divided into four treatments with 5 replicates each. The animals were topically treated with the plant extracts and Terramycin on the experimental groups and animals on the control group were given only normal saline. Healing was assessed by the wound size reduction and epithelialization. The wound healing effects of the plant extracts were compared to that of Terramycin. In all cases, there was only a slight decrease in wound area with time (day) indicating a not significant effect because there was no significant differences when compared to the control group. By the 27th day, the control group and Hilbas extract treated wounds totally closed while Atsuete extract and Terramycin treated wounds totally closed on the 30th day which shows a very long span of healing process. Thus, the findings did not justify its use in folkloric medicine for wound healing. It does not provide pharmacological evidence on the folkloric use of the plants.

 

Keywords: Pharmacology, wound healing, Bixa orellana, Artemisia vulgaris, experimental design, Cagayan de Oro City, Philippines