Potential Use of Curcumin, Garlic, and Zinc in Papular Urticaria: An Immunological Review

Описание: Title: Potential Use of Curcumin, Garlic, and Zinc in Papular Urticaria: An Immunological Review

Presenter: Dr. Victoria Palmer, MBBS MSc

Additional Authors:
Tristi Edwards, MBBS MSc

Description:
Papular urticaria (PU) is a papulovesicular hypersensitivity reaction to arthropod bites, which most commonly affects children. The management of papular urticaria has traditionally been guided by the treatment of itch and inflammation with medications such as oral antihistamines and topical corticosteroids along with removal of the offending agent. With the increased interest in the field of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among physicians and patients alike, we are led to investigate the role of turmeric, garlic and zinc in the treatment of papular urticaria, as they have been used in other inflammatory skin conditions with a similar immunological profile. A comprehensive review of the literature involving a search across multiple databases including PubMed, Medline, EMBASE and Google Scholar was conducted. Although the anti-inflammatory role of turmeric, garlic and zinc has been demonstrated in various systemic and cutaneous conditions, there is a paucity of well-designed, robust studies in the literature to formally declare efficacy in the treatment of papular urticaria. As with any traditional treatment option, alternative treatments are associated with a unique set of adverse effects which should also be considered when discussing these treatments with patients. Our findings display overlap in the chemokine profile of garlic, turmeric and zinc with the pathophysiology of papular urticaria. However, further studies on CAM as well as other new treatment options such as subcutaneous specific immunotherapy are needed to elucidate their role in the management of papular urticaria.