title: Effects of the folk medicinal plant extract Ankaferd Blood Stopper® on the ocular surface.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the effects of Ankaferd Blood Stopper(®) (ABS) on the ocular surface.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty adult male Wistar albino rats, weighing 390-530 g, were used in this prospective, controlled trial. One drop of ABS and one drop of balanced salt solution (BSS) were instilled into the lower conjunctival sac of the right and left eyes, respectively. After the rats were anesthetized, the ocular surface was evaluated based on the Draize criteria, and fluorescein tests were performed at 1, 2, 4, 18, 24, and 48 h. Subsequently, the rats were killed and all eyes were enucleated for histopathological examination.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The outcome of the Draize and fluorescein tests revealed that ABS caused more irritation of the ocular surface than BSS (P < 0.001). The highest mean ABS score was 4.9 for the Draize test and 0.4 for the fluorescein test, and ABS was considered to be a slight irritant. Histopathological examinations of the cornea and the conjunctiva revealed no significant difference between the eyes instilled with BSS and those instilled with ABS.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ABS is a hemostatic drug that exerts a slight toxic effect on the ocular surface. Given its ease of use and antibacterial activity, as well as its efficiency in stopping bleeding, the use of ABS during ocular surgery should be further investigated in experimental and clinical studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, The School of Medicine, Zonguldak Karaelmas University, Zonguldak, Turkey. atillaalpay@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Atilla
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alpay
authors.forename: Cenk
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Evren
authors.forename: Sibel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bektaş
authors.forename: Sılay Canturk
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Ugurbas
authors.forename: Suat Hayri
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Ugurbas
authors.forename: Fikret
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cınar
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003228:Conjunctiva / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D003315:Cornea / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D003318:Corneal Opacity / Q000139:chemically induced*; D008297:Male; D008519:Medicine, Traditional; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000633:toxicity*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
chemical_list: D010936:Plant Extracts; C539751:ankaferd blood stopper