Ethnobotanical and general use

Medical use
In popular medicine, the entire plant or the leaves are used against malignant tumorus, rheumatism, arthritis, diabetes; cirrhosis (GUPTA 1995), and against diarrhoea, dysentery and to cure wounds (PHILLIPSON et al. 1978, uphof 1968).

Healing properties
Febrifuge, antitumoural

Method of use
Two spoonfuls of the entire plant are boiled in 1.5 1 water for 30 minutes. Half a glass of the cool liquid is taken 3 times a day before the meals.

Chemical contents
Two flavonoids are found in the bark: kaempferol and dihydrokaempferol, furthermore tannins (cells with brown content of the bark), and 4 glycosides of quinovic acid. Indolic alkaloids are found in the roots and the leaves.

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Uses: wound healing, diabetic, blood depurattive, inflammation of the prostate, diarreah, diverticulitis, ulcer, ovarian, crysts, uterine, infection, cough, rheumaism, bladder inflection.                                                 

Origin: Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, Venezuela.         

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Whole plant: Infusion is drunk to remedy dysentery. Burned and powdered, then used on wounds. In a gargle to remedy mouth ulcers.

Leaf: Used in treatment of tuburculosis and for coughs and colds in NW Guyana.

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Diarrhoea & stomach ache: Stem infusion drunk, or crushed stem wrapped round waist

1) South American medicinal plants : botany, remedial properties, and general use / I. Roth, H. Lindorf. Berlin ; New York : Springer, c2002. -- p. 492.

2) Geraldini , Isanete, Journal of Ethnopharmacology v. 173, 2015 . -- p. 383-423

3) Robertt, A., et al.. Medicinal Plants of the Guianas (Guyana, Suriname, French Guyana)/Smithsonian NMNH. cited online: 17-08-2017

4) Milliken, William; Albert, Bruce. Economic Botany, vol 50, no 1, 1995, p. -- 10 - 25.