Patent ID: 6946490

Claim:
A method for use in treating viral diseases, comprising the steps of: substantially inhibiting infections from viral diseases by applying a composition of about 2% to about 90% by weight Echinacea purpurea providing viral microbe inhibitors and from substantially greater than 0.01% to about 0.8% by weight of a surfactant on an infected region; maintaining said composition comprising said Echinacea purpurea providing said microbe inhibitors and said surfactant on said infected region until external symptoms and physical manifestations of the infection substantially disappear about the infected region; said viral diseases comprising a viral disease selected from the group consisting of herpes simplex virus 1, herpes simplex virus 2, papilloma virus, varicella zoster virus (herpes zoster), and cytomegalovirus; said microbe inhibitors are applied to said infected region to substantially inhibit said infections; and said surfactant is a quaternary ammonium salt surfactant selected from the group consisting of alkyl dimethylbenzylammonium chloride, benzalkonium bromide, benzalkonium chloride, alkylbenzyldimethylammonium chloride, alkyldimethybethylbenzylammonium chloride, n-alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride, diisobutylphenoxyethoxethyl dimethylammonium chloride, n-dimethylbenzylammonium chloride, octyldecyldimethylammonium chloride, didecyldimethylammonium chloride, dioctyldimethylammonium chloride, diakyldimethylammonium chloride, octyldecylidimethylammonium chloride, laurryl dimethylbenzylammonium chloride, o-benzyl-p-chlorophenol, diethyldimethylammonium chloride, doctyldimethylammonium chloride, alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride, and alkylbenzyldimethylammonium chloride.