Oud (Agarwood) is a dark and heavy, oleoresin filled fragrant heartwood which is formed when a healthy tree of Aquilaria species is damaged either by fungal infection or physically to which tree's self defense mechanism responds by generating these oleoresins.

1. East Asian Medicine:

Agarwood is prescribed in traditional East Asian medicine to promote the flow of qi,relieve pain, arrest vomiting by warming the stomach, and to relieve asthma (Anon., 1995a).

2. Pleurisy:

Its use for the treatment of pleurisy is referenced in the Ayurvedic medicinal text the Susruta Samhita.

3. Nervous System Disorders:

When used in aromatherapy, agarwood oil may help to treat anxiety, stress, depression and other nervous system disorders.

4. Liver and Kidney:

Agarwood oil is used to treat cirrhosis of the liver and kidney problems.

5. Lung and Stomach Tumours:

Agarwood oil is used in the treatment of lung and stomach tumours.

6. Carminative Diuretic:

Agarwood oil is also used a carminative diuretic.

7. The Indian Council:

The Indian Council summarizes the properties of agarwood as follows: “Agarwood is considered stimulant, antiasthmatic, carminative, tonic, aphrodisiac and astringent. It is used in diarrhoea, dysentery, gout,
rheumatism and paralysis.

8. The Cropwatch Organisation:

The Cropwatch Organisation similarly lists acknowledged merits of agarwood in Asian medical praxis as “warming,” “to relieve stuck energy particularly in the digestive and respiratory systems,” “to alleviate pain,” and “balancing effects” on “nervous and emotional disorders.”

9. Middle East and Bangladesh:

In Egypt, Arabia and throughout the northeast part of Bangladesh, agarwood
is described as a stimulant, cardiac tonic and carminative (Bhuiyan et al., 2009).

10. China and Japan:

It is used as a traditional sedative, analgesic and digestive medicine in traditional Chinese and Japanese medicine (Abdullah et al., 2007; Liu etal., 2008).

11. Assam:

The water portion obtained as distillate after separating the oud oil during distillation process is used at present in Assam as an efficient stimulant and tonic fo the treatment of mental disorder and malnutrition

12. Miscellaneous:

The oud oil is used to treat illness during and after childbirth; to relieve spasms especially in the digestive and respiratory systems,
abdominal pain, asthma, cancer (used as a general tonic),colic,chest congestion, diarrhea, hiccups, nausea, nerves and treatment of
regurgitation (Burkill, 1966; Chakrabarty et al., 1994; Kim et al., 1997; Barden et al., 2000; Bhuiyan et al., 2009).

Agarwood is also prescribed for dropsy,as a carminative, a stimulant, for heart palpitations, and as a tonic
taken particularly during pregnancy, after childbirth and for diseases of female genital organs (Chakrabarty et al., 1994).