Abstract
Aspirin-induced asthma (AIA) is sensitive to many non-steroidal anti-inflamatory drugs. Therefore, the queustion of which drugs are safe and effective for AIA from the point of view of climination of fever and pain is extremely inportant. “Jiryu” (earthworm, Lumbricus spencer) has been used as an antipyretic drug in Chinese and Japanese folk medicine. The effect of “Jiryu” on AIA was investigated.
1) 500mg of “Jiryu” was given to five cases of AIA with no significant difference in asthmatic symptoms or respiratory functions.
2) 1500mg of “Jiryu” was given for three or seven days. There were no significant changes in asthmatic symptoms or PEFR after administration.
3) One case of AIA with fever was given 500mg of “Jiryu”, and antypyretic effects were ovserved with no exacerbation of asthmatic symptoms.
These results suggest that “Jiryu” is a useful antipyretic drug in AIA. Although the antipyretic components of “Jiryu” have been considered to be arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid, no clear explanation has been given about the precise mechanism of the antipyretic activity of these two components. Because abnormal arachidonic metabolisms have been proposed as one of the mechanisms of AIA, it is of interest that “Jiryu” contains arachidonic acids.
