Among the well-documented pharmacologic properties of DMSO include analgesia, anti-inflammation, softening of scar tissue, hydroxyl radical scavenging, vasodilation, and stimulation of healing. It reduces inflammation by several mechanisms. It is an antioxidant, a scavenger of the free radicals that gather at the site of injury. This capability has been observed in experiments with laboratory animals7 and in 150 ulcerative colitis patients in a double-blinded randomized study in Baghdad, Iraq.8 DMSO also stabilizes membranes and slows or stops leakage from injured cells.