Treating epilepsy in Italy between XIX and XX century

Journal of Ethnopharmacology Volume 145, Issue 2, 30 January 2013, Pages 608-613 Treating epilepsy in Italy between XIX and XX century(Article) Tagarelli, G.Email Author, Tagarelli, A., Liguori, M., Piro, A. View Correspondence (jump link) Istituto di Scienze Neurologiche-CNR, ISN-CNR, C.da Burga, 87050 Mangone (CS), Italy Abstract View references (59) Epilepsy is a neurological disorder which has been recognized since antiquity. This paper evaluates the prophylactic and therapeutic remedies used by folk medicine to cure epilepsy in Italy. The data has been collected by reviewing written sources of physicians, ethnographers, folklorists between the late nineteenth and mid twentieth century. This approach leads to unearthing of 78 heterogeneous healing methods that have been divided into 16 (20%) magical, 20 (26%) religious and 42 (54%) natural remedies. The latter has been subdivided into 18 (43%) animal remedies, 17 (40%) plant remedies and 7 (17%) other remedies. Religious and magical remedies were used with the conviction that they would be able to provide recovery from epilepsy and to ward off evil spirits which had taken possession of the sick. Interestingly, the herbal remedies highlighted 12 (70%) plants that play or might play an important role with respect to the mechanisms that generate the epileptic seizures. This leads us to reconsider the historical significance of folk medicine, too often it is underestimated owing to its use of ineffective remedies, born of incompetence and superstition. © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. Author keywords Epilepsy Ethnopharmacology Folk medicine Herbals History of medicine Indexed keywords EMTREE drug terms: anticonvulsive agentGentiana lutea extractHypericum perforatum extractMatricaria chamomilla extractMelissa officinalis extractPaeonia extractPapaver somniferum extractplant extractRosmarinus officinalis extractRuta extractTilia extractunclassified drugvalerianVerbena officinalis extractViscum album extract EMTREE medical terms: anticonvulsant activityarticledrug effectepilepsyethnic groupgentiana luteahealinghistoryhumanHypericum perforatumItalymagicMatricariamedicinal plantMelissa officinalisnonhumanPaeoniaPapaver somniferumphysicianrosemaryRutaceaespiritual healingTiliatraditional medicineValeriana officinalisverbena officinalisViscum album MeSH: AnimalsAnticonvulsantsEpilepsyHistory, 19th CenturyHistory, 20th CenturyHumansItalyPhytotherapyPlants, MedicinalReligionSuperstitions Species Index: Animalia Chemicals and CAS Registry Numbers: Viscum album extract, 53986-31-5, 75882-01-8, 8031-76-3; valerian, 8057-49-6; Anticonvulsants ISSN: 03788741 CODEN: JOETD Source Type: Journal Original language: English DOI: 10.1016/j.jep.2012.11.043 PubMed ID: 23220196 Document Type: Article References (59) View in search results format 1 Aceto, M.D., Harris, L.S., Abood, M.E., Rice, K.C. Stereoselective μ- and δ-opioid receptor-related antinociception and binding with (+)-thebaine (1999) European Journal of Pharmacology, 365 (2-3), pp. 143-147. Cited 14 times. doi: 10.1016/S0014-2999(98)00862-0 View at Publisher 2 Adams, M., Schneider, S.-V., Kluge, M., Kessler, M., Hamburger, M. Epilepsy in the Renaissance: A survey of remedies from 16th and 17th century German herbals (2012) Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 143 (1), pp. 1-13. Cited 21 times. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2012.06.010 View at Publisher 3 Adriano, A. (1932) Carmi, Tradizioni, Pregiudizi Nella Medicina Popolare Calabrese. Cited 3 times. Tipografia Commerciale Antonio Pranno Cosenza pp. 19-171 4 Akanmu, M.A., Honda, K., Inoué, S. Hypnotic effects of total aqueous extracts of Vervain hastata (Verbenaceae) in rats (2002) Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 56 (3), pp. 309-310. Cited 12 times. doi: 10.1046/j.1440-1819.2002.01009.x View at Publisher 5 Amalfi, G. (1890) Tradizioni Ed Usi Nella Penisola Sorrentina, p. 197. Cited 4 times. G. Pitrè, Curiosità Popolari Tradizionali Clausen Editore, Palermo 6 Amorosa, G.B. (1903) Riccia Nella Storia e Nel Folklore. Cited 2 times. Stabilimento Tipografico De Arcangelis Casalbordino p. 348 7 Awad, R., Muhammad, A., Durst, T., Trudeau, V.L., Arnason, J.T. Bioassay-guided fractionation of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) using an in vitro measure of GABA transaminase activity (2009) Phytotherapy Research, 23 (8), pp. 1075-1081. Cited 48 times. http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/121647384/PDFSTART doi: 10.1002/ptr.2712 View at Publisher 8 Balladoro, A. (1907) Appunti di Medicina Popolare Veronese. Cited 2 times. Stabilimento tipo-lit Franchini Verona p. 6 9 Bastanzi, G. Superstizioni religiose nelle provincie di Treviso e Belluno (1887) Archivio per l'Antropologia e la Etnologia, 17, pp. 271-310. Cited 2 times. 10 Bellucci, G. (1907) Il Feticismo Primitivo in Italia e le Sue Forme di Adattamento Unione Tipografica Cooperativa Editrice Perugia pp.104-107 11 Benke, D., Barberis, A., Kopp, S., Altmann, K.-H., Schubiger, M., Vogt, K.E., Rudolph, U., (...), Möhler, H. GABAA receptors as in vivo substrate for the anxiolytic action of valerenic acid, a major constituent of valerian root extracts (2009) Neuropharmacology, 56 (1), pp. 174-181. Cited 73 times. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2008.06.013 View at Publisher 12 Bernoni, D.G. (1878) Tradizioni Popolari Veneziane. Medicina. Cited 2 times. Filippi Editore Venezia pp. 64-66 13 Bronzini, G.B. (1987) Michele Gerardo Pasquarelli. Medicina, Magia e Classi Sociali Nella Basilicata Degli Anni Venti. Scritti di un Medico Antropologo Congedo Editore Galatina pp. 258-539 14 Chaudhary, U.J., Duncan, J.S., Lemieux, L. A dialogue with historical concepts of epilepsy from the Babylonians to Hughlings Jackson: Persistent beliefs (2011) Epilepsy and Behavior, 21 (2), pp. 109-114. Cited 3 times. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2011.03.029 View at Publisher 15 Cirese, A.M. Lo studio delle tradizioni popolari (1996) Manuale di Letteratura Italiana. Storia per Generi e Problemi. dall'Unità d'Italia Alla Fine Del Novecento, 4, pp. 921-941. F. Brioschi, C. Di Girolamo, Bollati Boringhieri Torino 16 Confessor, M.V.A., Mendonça, L.E.T., Mourão, J.S., Alves, R.R.N. Animals to heal animals: Ethnoveterinary practices in semiarid region, Northeastern Brazil (2009) Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 5, art. no. 37. Cited 39 times. doi: 10.1186/1746-4269-5-37 View at Publisher 17 Coronedi-Berti, C. Appunti di medicina Bolognese (1877) Rivista di Letteratura Popolare, 1, p. 7. G. Pitrè, F. Sabatini, Ermanno Loescher Editore Torino-Roma-Firenze 18 Cosmacini, G., Gaudenzi, G., Satolli, R. (1996) Dizionario di Storia della Salute. Cited 8 times. Einaudi Torino pp. 199-200 19 De Blasio, A. (1900) Inciarmatori, Maghi e Streghe di Benevento. Cited 2 times. Luigi Pierro Editore Napoli pp. 1-249 20 De Martino, E. (1959) Sud e Magia. Cited 98 times. Feltrinelli Milano 21 De Nino, A. (1891) Usi e Costumi Abruzzesi. Malattie e Rimedi, 5, pp. 44-45. Tipografia Barbera Firenze 22 Diamantis, A., Sidiropoulou, K., Magiorkinis, E. Epilepsy during the middle ages, the renaissance and the enlightenment (2010) Journal of Neurology, 257 (5), pp. 691-698. Cited 7 times. doi: 10.1007/s00415-009-5433-7 View at Publisher 23 Eustacchi-Nardi, A.M. (1958) Contributo Allo Studio Delle Tradizioni Popolari Marchigiane. Cited 2 times. Leo Olschki Editore Firenze pp. 312-314 24 Ferraro, G. Botanica popolare in Carpeneto d'Acqui (1885) Archivio per Lo Studio Delle Tradizioni Popolari, 4, pp. 165-189. Cited 5 times. 25 Finamore, G. Tradizioni popolari abruzzesi (1894) Curiosità Popolari Tradizionali, 13, pp. 118-239. G. Pitrè, Clausen Editore Torino-Palermo 26 Frazer, J.G. (1925) The Golden Bough. A Study in Magic and Religion. Cited 1311 times. The Macmillan company New York p. 538 27 Galenus, C. De simplicium medicamentorum temperamentis ac facultatibus (1826) Opera Omnia, 9, p. 859. C.G. Kühn, Officina Libraria Knoblochii Leipzig 28 Galenus, C. De simplicium medicamentorum temperamentis ac facultatibus (1826) Opera Omnia, 12, pp. 23-342. C.G. Kühn, Officina Libraria Knoblochii Leipzig 29 Gonzalez-Trujano, M.E., Carrera, D., Ventura-Martinez, R., Cedillo-Portugal, E., Navarrete, A. Neuropharmacological profile of an ethanol extract of Ruta chalepensis L. in mice (2006) Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 106 (1), pp. 129-135. Cited 38 times. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2005.12.014 View at Publisher 30 Gupta, G., Kazmi, I., Afzal, M., Rahman, M., Saleem, S., Ashraf, M.S., Khusroo, M.J., (...), Anwar, F. Sedative, antiepileptic and antipsychotic effects of Viscum album L. (Loranthaceae) in mice and rats (2012) Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 141 (3), pp. 810-816. Cited 24 times. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2012.03.013 View at Publisher 31 Heidari, M.R., Dadollahi, Z., Mehrabani, M., Mehrabi, H., Pourzadeh-Hosseini, M., Behravan, E., Etemad, L. Study of antiseizure effects of Matricaria recutita extract in mice (2009) Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1171, pp. 300-304. Cited 16 times. ISBN: 978-157331737-5 doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2009.04917.x View at Publisher 32 Istat (2011) L'Italia in 150 Anni. Sommario di Statistiche Storiche 1861-2010. Cited 12 times. Istituto Nazionale di Statistica Roma p. 465 33 Ivetic, V., Trivic, S., Pogancev, M.K., Popovic, M., Zlinská, J. Effects of St John's wort (Hypericum perforatum L.) extracts on epileptogenesis (2011) Molecules, 16 (9), pp. 8062-8075. Cited 5 times. http://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/16/9/8062/pdf doi: 10.3390/molecules16098062 View at Publisher 34 Kajiwara, K., Sunaga, K., Tsuda, T., Sugaya, A., Sugaya, E., Kimura, M. Peony root extract upregulates transthyretin and phosphoglycerate mutase in mouse cobalt focus seizure (2008) Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 371 (3), pp. 375-379. Cited 5 times. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2008.04.094 View at Publisher 35 López, V., Martín, S., Gómez-Serranillos, M.P., Carretero, M.E., Jäger, A.K., Calvo, M.I. Neuroprotective and neurological properties of melissa officinalis (2009) Neurochemical Research, 34 (11), pp. 1955-1961. Cited 43 times. doi: 10.1007/s11064-009-9981-0 View at Publisher 36 Loscalzo, L.M., Wasowski, C., Marder, M. Neuroactive flavonoid glycosides from Tilia petiolaris DC. extracts (2009) Phytotherapy Research, 23 (10), pp. 1453-1457. Cited 7 times. http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/122259920/PDFSTART doi: 10.1002/ptr.2800 View at Publisher 37 Magiorkinis, E., Sidiropoulou, K., Diamantis, A. Hallmarks in the history of epilepsy: Epilepsy in antiquity (2010) Epilepsy and Behavior, 17 (1), pp. 103-108. Cited 30 times. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2009.10.023 View at Publisher 38 Marzano, G.B. Usi e costumi di Laureana di Borrello (1890) La Calabria, 3, pp. 29-30. Cited 2 times. 39 Mazzuchi, P. Leggende, pregiudizi e superstizioni del volgo nell'Alto Polesine (1888) Archivio per l'Antropologia e la Etnologia, 18, pp. 259-276. Cited 2 times. 40 Moffa, S. (1937) Medicina Popolare Molisana. Cited 3 times. Tipografia editrice Miccoli Napoli p. 11 41 Nardi, M. La medicina popolare in Toscana (1936) Lares, 7, pp. 33-38. 42 Nitti, A. Appunti di folk-lore barese. Malattie e terapia popolare (1912) Apulia, 3, pp. 1-17. Cited 2 times. 43 Ostermann, V. (1894) La Vita in Friuli. Usi, Costumi, Credenze, Pregiudizi, e Superstizioni Popolari. Cited 2 times. Tipografia Del Bianco Editore Udine pp. 57-459 44 Öztürk, N., Başer, K.H.C., Aydin, S., Öztürk, Y., Çaliş, I. Effects of Gentiana lutea ssp. symphyandra on the central nervous system in mice (2002) Phytotherapy Research, 16 (7), pp. 627-631. Cited 40 times. doi: 10.1002/ptr.998 View at Publisher 45 Park, S.-E., Kim, S., Sapkota, K., Kim, S.-J. Neuroprotective effect of rosmarinus officinalis extract on human dopaminergic cell line, SH-SY5Y (2010) Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, 30 (5), pp. 759-767. Cited 25 times. doi: 10.1007/s10571-010-9502-3 View at Publisher 46 Pigorini-Beri, C. (1889) Costumi e Superstizioni dell'Appennino Marchigiano. Cited 3 times. Lapi Tipografo-Editore Città di Castello p. 55 47 Pitrè, G. (1896) Medicina Popolare Siciliana. Cited 28 times. Carlo Clausen Editore Torino-Palermo pp. 434-435 48 Plinio, G.S. (1985) Storia Naturale, pp. 75-781. Cited 2 times. Einaudi Editore Torino 49 Plinio, G.S. (1986) Storia Naturale, 4, pp. 15-443. Einaudi Editore Torino 50 Rivera, A. (1988) Il Mago, Il Santo, la Morte, la Festa. Forme Religiose Nella Cultura Popolare. Cited 6 times. Edizioni Dedalo Bari p. 266 51 Sapelli, G. Dalla periferia all'integrazione europea (1991) Storia dell'Economia Italiana. l'Età Contemporanea un Paese Nuovo Giulio Einaudi Editore Torino pp. 59-141 52 Sembianti, P. Superstizione nella medicina popolare triestina (1936) Atti Del III Congresso Nazionale di Arti e Tradizioni Popolari Edizione dell'O.N.D Roma pp. 268-277 53 Sidiropoulou, K., Diamantis, A., Magiorkinis, E. Hallmarks in 18th- and 19th-century epilepsy research (2010) Epilepsy and Behavior, 18 (3), pp. 151-161. Cited 5 times. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.04.004 View at Publisher 54 Stevens, P.F. (2001) Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9. Cited 813 times. June 2008. Accessed 18th Feb 2012 http://www.mobot.org/MOBOT/research/APweb/ 55 Tagarelli, G., Tagarelli, A., Piro, A. Folk medicine used to heal malaria in Calabria (southern Italy) (2010) Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 6, art. no. 27. Cited 15 times. http://www.ethnobiomed.com/content/6/1/27 doi: 10.1186/1746-4269-6-27 View at Publisher 56 Tancredi, G. (1938) Folclore Garganico Armillotta & Marino Tipografi Manfredonia p. 101 57 Tortella, F.C., Cowan, A., Adler, M.W. Studies on the excitatory and inhibitory influence of intracerebroventricularly injected opioids on seizure thresholds in rats (1984) Neuropharmacology, 23 (7 PART 1), pp. 749-754. Cited 22 times. doi: 10.1016/0028-3908(84)90107-2 View at Publisher 58 Zanazzo, G. (1908) Usi, Costumi e Pregiudizi Del Popolo di Roma. Cited 4 times. Società Tipografica-Editrice Nazionale Torino pp. 30-60 59 Zanetti, Z. (1892) La Medicina Delle Nostre Donne. Cited 3 times. Lapitipografo Editore Citta di Castello pp. 84-86 Tagarelli, G.; Istituto di Scienze Neurologiche-CNR, ISN-CNR, C.da Burga, Italy; email:g.tagarelli@isn.cnr.it © Copyright 2013 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved. © MEDLINE® is the source for the MeSH terms of this document.