title: Efficacy of Viola odorata in Treatment of Chronic Insomnia.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder that reduces quality of life.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Due to side effects of hypnotic drug and the increasing demand for alternative medicine substitutes, violet oil (VO) was used in this study. VO is a known medication in Iranian traditional medicine that induces sleep in insomniac patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted as an experimental pretest-posttest evaluation on VO efficacy in 50 patients with chronic insomnia in Iranian Traditional Medicine Clinic of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran. Treatment consisted of intranasal drop of VO, two drops containing 66 mg of VO in each nostril nightly before sleeping for one month. All patients were asked to complete an Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) questionnaire before the start of the trial and after one month of treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Improvements in sleep and ISI scores were significantly greater in patients after a month receiving VO drop in comparison with before starting treatment (P < 0.05). A few patients reported some complications about VO consumption, most of which were mild and no serious adverse event was encountered.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  VO can be presented as a safe, well-tolerated, and effective herbal preparation in patients with chronic insomnia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Iranian Traditional Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Zohre
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Feyzabadi
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Social Medicine, Shahed University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jafari
authors.affiliation: The School of Iranian Traditional Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Seyed Hamid
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kamali
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Hassan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ashayeri
authors.affiliation: Complementary and Traditional Medicine Faculty, Mashhad University of Medical sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
authors.forename: Shapour
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Badiee Aval
authors.affiliation: Quran, Hadith and Medicine Sciences Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Mahdi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Esfahani
authors.affiliation: Department of Herbal and Traditional Medicine, Research Institute of Islamic and Complementary Medicine, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Omid
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Sadeghpour
keywords: Chronic Insomnia; Iranian Traditional Medicine; Viola Odorata L; Violet Oil