Mumps

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

Pokeweed Antiviral Protein (PAP) [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]:

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. Warning! All parts of the plant, Pokeweed (Phytolacca Americana), is poisonous and should not be ingested. Thoroughly cooking the plant reduces that toxicity. The effects of the improperly prepared plant include vomiting, diarrhoea, cramps, headache, confusion, convulstions, low blood pressure, heart block and death. Only plant extracts (PAP) or thoroughly prepared plants should be ingested, and even then, under professional medical guidance.

Recommendation: no recommendation (There is insufficient evidence to support claims that PAP helps to treat mumps)

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.cbif.gc.ca/pls/pp/ppack.info?p_psn=12&p_type=all&p_sci=sci&p_x=px

3. http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Phytolacca+americana

4. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/315368

5. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002874.htm

6. http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/HerbsVitaminsandMinerals/pokeweed

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