Ethnomedicine of Dharwad district in Karnataka, India--plants used in oral health care.

The present ethnomedicine survey covers the Dharwad district of Karnataka in southern India. It was revealed that 35 plants belonging to 26 families are being used to treat different types of oral ailments like toothache, plaque and caries, pyorrhea and aphthae. Sixteen of these plants were new claims for the treatment of oral ailments not previously reported in the ethnomedicinal literature of India. Basella alba, Blepharis repens, Capparis sepiaria, Oxalis corniculata and Ricinus communis are used for the treatment of aphthae; Azima tetracantha, Caesalpinia coriaria, Cleome gynandra, Gossypium herbacium, Leucas aspera, Merremia chryseides, Pergularia daemia, Prosopis juliflora and Solanum nigrum are used to treat tooth ache and Cassia hirsuta and Cassia tora are used in the treatment of plaque and caries.