PEPPER FOR LOCAL ANESTHESIA

The Problem and its Background Introduction Black pepper is a common name of the plant Piper nigrum that belongs to the family Solanaceae. It is one of the greatest spices ever available to man to the prehistoric times up to the present1. Black pepper, the dried unripe fruit, is just one of the products that can be derived from the berries of the plant. Black pepper has aromatic, slightly musty odor, spicy but not hot and has tangy flavors that stimulates the senses. For that reason, black pepper is well known throughout the world as a culinary spice and condiment. Like all eastern spices, pepper was historically both a seasoning and a medicine.2 Black peppercorns figure in remedies in Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani medicine in South Asia. The 5th century Syriac Book of Medicines prescribes pepper (or perhaps long pepper) for such illnesses as constipation, diarrhea, earache, gangrene, heart disease, hernia, hoarseness, indigestion, insect bites, insomnia, joint pain, liver problems, lung disease, oral abscesses, sunburn, tooth decay, and toothaches.3 Black pepper is indigenous to India and gradually began to make its way eastwards to Southeast Asia where it is now also cultivated and grown. Some of the major producers of black pepper nowadays are India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Brazil, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and China.4 Although it is barely found in the Philippines, it is grown in Southern Tagalog provinces, particularly Batangas Tiaong, Quezon Nauhan, Oriental Minor San Carlos City, Negros Occidental and Basilan. During the 20th century, black pepper has been introduced in most tropical countries. There is no exact record on how black pepper was introduced in the Philippines, but probably Malays who migrated brought black pepper to Philippines to the coming of Spanish. Background of the Study Pain is an unpleasant sensation associated with actual or potential tissue damage, and mediated by specific nerve fibers to the brain where its conscious appreciation may