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Objectives: Momiai ( shilajit, mummy, mumie, or mineral pitch) has been used traditionally in different medical systems for the treatment of a variety of ailments since hundreds of years ago. It is a natural substance found in different rocky parts of the world, formed by plants, mineral, and animal remains gradually. There is also worthwhile evidence supporting its oral use for bone repair in Persian medicine. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of momiai in tibia fracture healing.Design: This study is a randomized double-blinded controlled trial. Settings/Location: Three different hospitals in Tehran, Iran. Subjects: Patients with age range of 18-60 years admitted due to new tibia fracture were enrolled after meeting the inclusion criteria.Interventions: The patients were divided into two groups randomly and received two 500 mg capsules of momiai or placebo for 28 days.Outcome measures: The process of bone healing was assessed by frequent X-ray radiographies and adverse effects were recorded.Results: Totally, 160 patients participated in the study either in two equal intervention or placebo groups. There was no significant difference between groups in terms of demographic and descriptive data. At the end of the study, the mean time of tibial bone union was 129 days in the experimental group, while it was 153 days in the placebo group ( p < 0.049). There was no significant difference in the reported adverse effects between the two groups ( p = 0.839).Conclusions: The current study showed that oral consumption of momiai after tibial shaft fracture surgery could be a promising option to reduce the healing time.

Fractures, especially leg fractures, are one of the most common problems in the world, and it causes a considerable economic and social burden for patients and societies. Orthopedic surgery plays the most important role in the treatment of fractures, but it is expensive and requires anesthesia which has a variety of side effects. Besides surgery and conventional treatments, it seems that the use of natural substances as complementary therapy can be useful. In Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM) manuscripts, many diverse natural substances, especially medicinal herbs, are mentioned as useful medications for fracture healing. The aim of this study was to investigate medicinal plants and natural substances used in TPM as useful in fracture healing, by an overview of traditional knowledge as compared with new investigations. The main manuscripts of TPM, including the Canon of Medicine, Tohfat-ol-Moemenin, Exir-e–azam and Makhzan-ol-advieh, were assembled through a literature search, to select the substances used in fracture healing. Also, current evidence on related substances were studied through a search of Google Scholar and PubMed databases. In this study, eleven substances were identified and categorized into three groups: plants, animals, and minerals. The results of our study showed that the most cited substances were used due to their effects on fracture or wound healing, inflammations, and pain. This historical assessment can help in obtaining new data about natural substances for faster fracture healing, which may lead to subsequent opportunities to assess their potential medicinal use. [GMJ. 2016;5(4):165-72]

Background.Fracture repair is a complex process. An inappropriate diet is a contributing risk factor for fracture nonunion. The aim of this study was to extract dietary recommendations for fracture healing according to traditional Persian medicine (TPM) literature.Method.The contents relevant to diets in fracture healing were selected from main textbooks in TPM like Al Qanon fi Al-teb (The Canon). Other reference textbooks in traditional medicine were also used for a comprehensive study in this respect. Finally content analysis was used for summarizing and describing the results. Findings. Food stuffs are classified in TPM according to their nutritive value, their assimilability, and the quality of achieved chyme. Some light meals like chicken soup are recommended for the early days of fracture and high-nutrient and dense foods such as goat’s or sheep’s head and nuts are advised in following days for fracture healing acceleration and callus formation. Several recommendations are also provided for pacing the healing process.Conclusion.A comparison of Avicenna and other Persian sage’s recommended regimens with the recent evidence revealed the potential positive effects of their regimen for bone healing acceleration. It can shed light on a part of history of orthopedics and add to current knowledge about bone fracture and its management.