Physicochemical quality control of senna products from Iranian phytopharmaceutics

Background: There is an increasing attention to and usage of herbal drugs around the world. Medicinal products containing senna herb are very popular herbal remedies. In order to assess the quality of Iranian herbal products, as a part of national effort to achieve profile of quality of pharmaceuticals, this study was designed to evaluate the quality of products containing senna herb. Method: Samples were purchased directly from drugstores in Tehran in 2002. The comparative study was conducted according to pharmacopoeial procedures. Also Iranian products were compared to appropriate forign known-brands. Conclusion: Some defects were observed in Iranian products in respects to uniformity of contents and weights, and even content of the dosage forms. But in total, most of the products were found to be acceptable and at appropriate quality.