Mechanistic support of traditional Persian medicine for the treatment of acne vulgaris: A scoping review

Background Acne vulgaris is one of the most prevalent skin diseases, which also contributes to many psychological problems. Despite the recent progress in the treatment of acne vulgaris, the necessity for discovering more effective solutions has motivated many lines of research on natural and medicinal plants. The Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM) introduced some plants and remedies for acne treatment. Given the universal welcome for herbal medicine, this review was performed to formally assess the evidence for herbal medicines for acne vulgaris in TPM. Methods The medicinal plants used in this study for treating acne vulgaris were selected based on common references to the plants in five famous textbooks of TPM from different time periods. Then, the anti‐inflammatory and anti‐microbial effects of these medicinal plants were investigated according to the recent literature available in five electronic databases including Scopus, Web of Sciences, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. Results Twenty‐one herbs were commonly references in traditional TPM texts as helpful for topical treatment of acne vulgaris. The data collected from the electronic databases demonstrated most of these plants (eg, Astragalus sarcocolla, Ficus carica, and Hordeum vulgare) have both anti‐inflammatory and anti‐microbial mechanisms, which may assist to treat acne vulgaris. Conclusion This scoping review demonstrated many medicinal plants recommended by TPM books have therapeutic potential for acne vulgaris via multiple mechanisms.