Acute Abdominal Pain

Efficacy of Alternative and Other Treatments According to GRADE* Ranking:

Strychnos Nux-Vomica (Maqianzi, Poison Nut) [1, 8, 9, 10]:

WARNING! This substance is HIGHLY POISONOUS. The seeds contain Strychnine, which may cause convulsions, breathing difficulties and death, even if as little as 5 milligrams is ingested

Recommendation: Strongly against (There is no evidence in the form of clinical trials which reports the effectiveness of Strychnos Nux-Vomica, because it is highly poisonous to humans, and is not recommended.)

Grade of Evidence: very low quality of evidence

Peppermint Oil [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7]:

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It may mildly help with some of the symptoms, and even then has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: no recommendation (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that peppermint helps to treat acute abdominal pain)

Grade of Evidence: low of evidence

Red Pepper (Capsaicin):

Please note, this management does NOT treat the condition itself. It is proposed only as a weak supportive symptomatic support, and even then, has insufficient evidence to back up this claim at present.

Recommendation: weak (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that red peppers help to treat or acute abdominal pain)

Grade of Evidence: very low quality of evidence

Curanderismo:

Recommendation: weak (although there are reports from people that Curanderismo may help deal with pain, but there are no reliable studies done yet)

Grade of Evidence: very low quality of evidence

* www.gradeworkinggroup.org

Summary References

Treatments:

1. Ades T, Alteri R, Gansler T, Yeargin P, "Complete Guide to Complimentary & Alternative Cancer Therapies", American Cancer Society, Atlanta USA, 2009

2. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/peppermint

3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17420159

4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19507027

5. http://www.medicine.ox.ac.uk/bandolier/booth/alternat/AT022.html

6. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-peppermint.html

7. http://nccam.nih.gov/health/peppermintoil/index.htm

8. David Michael Wood et al. Case report: Survival after deliberate strychnine self-poisoning, with toxicokinetic data. Critical Care October 2002 Vol 6 No 5

9. Arnold, M.D., Harry L. (1968). Poisonous Plants of Hawaii. Tokyo, Japan: Charles E. Tuttle Co.. p. 20. ISBN 0804804745.

10. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/strychnos-nux-vomica

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