valerian

valerian is a topic covered in the Taber's Medical Dictionary.

To view the entire topic, please or .

Nursing Central is an award-winning, complete mobile solution for nurses and students. Look up information on diseases, tests, and procedures; then consult the database with 5,000+ drugs or refer to 65,000+ dictionary terms. Explore these free sample topics:

-- The first section of this topic is shown below --

(vă-lēr′ē-an)

To hear audio pronunciation of this topic, purchase a subscription or log in.

[Fr. Valeria, the name of a Roman province, where the plant was common]
A perennial herb (Valeriana officinalis) used as a sedative and sleep aid. The drug acts by inhibiting the breakdown of gamma-aminobutyric acid in the brain. It may interact with other sedatives and hypnotics such as alcohol and barbituates. Its effectiveness is limited.
SYN: SEE: garden heliotrope; SEE: garden valerian

-- To view the remaining sections of this topic, please or --

(vă-lēr′ē-an)

To hear audio pronunciation of this topic, purchase a subscription or log in.

[Fr. Valeria, the name of a Roman province, where the plant was common]
A perennial herb (Valeriana officinalis) used as a sedative and sleep aid. The drug acts by inhibiting the breakdown of gamma-aminobutyric acid in the brain. It may interact with other sedatives and hypnotics such as alcohol and barbituates. Its effectiveness is limited.
SYN: SEE: garden heliotrope; SEE: garden valerian

There's more to see -- the rest of this topic is available only to subscribers.