An Overview of Cardiotonic Medicinal Plants from the Perspective of Iranian Traditional Medicine

Context: Cardiovascular disorders are a leading cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide, especially in people with diabetes. Due to synthetic drugs’ adverse e ects, new medicines are needed. Evidence Acquisition: Iranian traditional medicine (ITM) is one of the oldest medical systems. In this article, we first introduce a list of cardiotonic medicinal plants based on ITM. Then we review the cardio-related e ects of these plants based on electronic databases. Results: Among the introduced medicinal plants from ITM, Phyllanthus emblica L., Rosa canina L., Ocimum basilicum L., and Melissa oÿcinalis L. have cardiotonic e ects. Also, P. emblica, O. basilicum, M. oÿcinalis, Citrus medica L., Malus domestica Borkh., Elettaria car-damomum (L.) Maton, and R. canina have cardioprotective e ects and possess several biological activities that reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors. Conclusions: The cardiotonic medicinal plants based on ITM have excellent value; several pharmacological studies have proved some of their cardioprotective and cardiotonic e ects. The other plants’ potential for improving the heart’s contractile power as a cardiotonic drug must be evaluated in further pharmacological and clinical studies.