Urticaria (Sharā) with Reference to Unani and Modern Medicine Concept: An Overview

Abstract

Urticaria is one of the common ailments of skin which may be considered as an extremely disabling and difficult-to-treat condition. Urticaria is the fourth-most prevalent allergic disease which occurs due to the release of histamine, bradykinin, kallikrein, and other vasoactive substances from mast cells and basophils in the superficial dermis. It is appropriate to not call it one disease, instead it can be considered as a reaction pattern of the skin which involves the upper dermis, characterized by localized edema and represented by the development of wheals. Treatment forms widely used in modern medicine for this condition are non-sedative anti histamines and corticosteroids. A complementary and integrative approach for urticaria is the need of the hour, wherein, various single or combination of herbs and extracts can be used independently as well as along with allopathic drugs. In Unani literature, disease has been described by the name of Sharā. The aim of the present paper was to explore the different aspects of urticaria with special reference to Unani and modern medicine.