Toothache plant: A comprehensive review focusing on its applications in dental health

The contemporary era showcases a growing emphasis on alternative medicine, specifically the utilization of ethnomedicine, which has gained significant attraction in recent times. This review explores the curative properties and ethnomedicinal utilization of the "Toothache plant" belonging to the Asteraceae family, the most common weed in crop fields. "Toothache plant" has added noteworthy attention in dentistry due to its unique properties. The toothache plant is well-known for providing numbing and analgesic effects by simply chewing the flowers due to the presence of active compounds such as Spilanthol. The analgesic property makes the plant a potential candidate for natural pain relievers, particularly in dentistry. Besides its dental application, this plant is used as an antidote for snake bites. This review summarises the ethnomedicinal values and clinical applications of the toothache plant, with a particular focus on oral health care, and the findings presented herein are anticipated to help in future research.