ABSTRACT
The review deals with 583 species of plants covering 419 genera and 135 families used by different tribes living throughout India for curing a variety of skin ailments. They are used in curing 34 skin diseases under 904 ethnomedicinal practices. Azadirachta indica and Jatropha curcas cures a maximum of 9 skin ailments each followed by Abutilón indicum, Argemone 456mexicana, Callicarpa macrophylla, Datura metel, Lawsonia inermis each curing 7 ailments and others. As many as 27 plants cure 5-9 skin diseases. Of the 904 practices 789 involve single plant only and the rest 115 involve a combination of one to seven plants. Detailed phytochemical and pharmaco- logical studies are needed to determine the effective constituents and characteristic biological activity.
