Abstract:

Traditionally, different parts of the plant Newbouldia laevis ranging from the stem, leaves, flower, roots, barks and stem barks are widely used in Africa for the management of numerous disease conditions including hemorrhoids/pile. The aim of this study is to formulate and evaluate emulgel formulations containing the ethanol extract of Newbouldia laevis stem bark for management of recto-anal inflammation. Stem bark of the plant was cleaned, crushed and macerated in absolute ethanol for 24 h at room temperature, the mixture was filtered and concentrated to obtain the dried extract which was used to prepare emulgel formulations at different concentrations (0.50, 0.75, 1.00 %w/w). The emulgels were evaluated for physical properties such as color, odor, feel, homogeneity, grittiness, phase separation; chemical evaluations such as pH, density, spreadability, extrudability and particle size of the formulations were analyzed. Anti-hemorrhoidal activity of the emulgels on croton-induced hemorrhoids in laboratory mice was also evaluated. Results show that all the emulgels had acceptable organoleptic and physicochemical properties. Histopathological analysis revealed dose-dependent reduction of inflamed tissues in croton-induced rectal inflammation. This study shows the development of a standardized dosage form; emulgel, containing the ethanol extract of Newbouldia laevis with propensity to ameliorate inflammation in the recto-anal region.

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