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ABSTRACT
Background
Kratom (Mitragyna speciosa Korth.) is a medicinal plant, widely used in Southeast Asia chiefly for its unique medicinal properties in treating chronic pain, opioid dependence and withdrawal, and as a mood enhancer.
Method
Relevant articles describing kratom's medicinal utility was identified and reviewed.
Results
In traditional settings, laborers chew fresh leaves or ingest a kratom decoction (tea) as a stimulant that increases work performance, while those with opioid use disorder (OUD) use kratom as an affordable substitute for opioids. Though kratom is alleged to cause adverse health effects if used frequently over prolonged periods, its use has not been linked to any major health threat in traditional settings.
Conclusion
Currently, kratom’s pharmacological and long-term safety profile remains poorly elucidated and warrants further research. This paper provides a brief account of possibly overlooked medicinal potential of kratom.
KEYWORDS:
Acknowledgments
Gregory Domnic is a recipient of the Biasiswa Yang Di-Pertuan Agong 2018/19. This study was funded by Universiti Sains Malaysia Research University (RU) grant (Grant number: 1001/PBIOLOGI/8012268) and Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS), Ministry of Education, Malaysia (Grant number: 203/PBIOLOGI/601228).
Disclosure statement
All the authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.