Microbiological Status and Pharmaceutical Evaluation of Commercially Available Herbal Medicinal Products in Lagos, Nigeria

Some herbal products were sourced from traditional medicine practitioners purposely to evaluate their microbial and pharmaceutical qualities. These products were 15 in number and were of different dosage forms. Phytochemical tests were carried out to determine their phyto-constituents. Also, the microbial qualities were determined and the pharmaceutical evaluation carried out through tablet disintegration of powders, crushing and friability. The powdered formulations were subjected to particle size determination and angle of repose. The density of the suspensions and solutions were taken. Results indicated presence of alkaloids, anthraquinones, tannins and cardenolides. The microbial load of the products varies. Seven (46.67%) of the products were contaminated with Salmonella, ten (66.67%) were contaminated with fungi, ten (66.67%) were contaminated by Staphylococcus aureus and nine (9) were contaminated with E.coli.(60%). The angle of repose for the powder dosage forms were high, this indicate that the powdered products were not free flowing and not highly cohesive. Also, acceptable crushing strength and friability was shown by the tablet formulation but it failed the disintegration time. Out of the fifteen products, two of the products were registered with NAFDAC (13.33%), all the products indicated their manufacturing and expiry dates while ten (66.67%) have their contents stated. All the products have their therapeutic claims indicated on their containers. In conclusion, there should be control of standards of herbal medicine in Nigerian markets as well as constant evaluation and monitoring of the various products.