Snakeroot is a common name that refers to several different plants, including Rauwolfia serpentina (Indian snakeroot), Aristolochia serpentaria (Virginia snakeroot), and others. In various traditional systems of medicine, especially Ayurveda and traditional Chinese medicine, different "snakeroot" species have been used for a range of ailments, primarily for nervous disorders, hypertension, and snake bites. There are occasional mentions in some ethnobotanical records of snakeroot (often without clear species identification) being used in folk remedies for urinary problems, which might include kidney stones, but such references are sparse, imprecise, and not central to traditional uses.

There is no substantial scientific evidence supporting the use of any snakeroot species for the treatment or prevention of kidney stones. Clinical studies or pharmacological investigations specifically addressing kidney stones are lacking. Most of the available literature focuses on other indications (such as antihypertensive or sedative effects for Rauwolfia serpentina). Therefore, the use of snakeroot for kidney stones is primarily justified by scattered traditional references rather than systematic medical tradition or scientific validation, and the evidence supporting its efficacy for this condition is extremely weak.