Ethnogynaecological Knowledge of Traditional Medicinal Plants Used by the Indigenous Communities of North Waziristan, Pakistan

Sabith Rehman; Zafar Iqbal; Rahmatullah Qureshi; Inayat Ur Rahman; Muazzam Ali Khan; Mohamed M A Elshaer; Dunia A Al Farraj; Mohamed S Elshikh; Muhammad Younas; Shazia Sakhi; Ghazala Nawaz; Niaz Ali; Fazal Rahim; Hamid Ali; Imran Khan; Siddiq Ur Rahman; Noha M Abu Bakr Elsaid

doi:10.1155/2022/6528264

Ethnogynaecological Knowledge of Traditional Medicinal Plants Used by the Indigenous Communities of North Waziristan, Pakistan

Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2022 Aug 4:2022:6528264. doi: 10.1155/2022/6528264. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Sabith Rehman¹, Zafar Iqbal¹, Rahmatullah Qureshi², Inayat Ur Rahman^{1

3

4}, Muazzam Ali Khan⁵, Mohamed M A Elshaer^{6

7}, Dunia A Al Farraj⁸, Mohamed S Elshikh⁸, Muhammad Younas², Shazia Sakhi⁹, Ghazala Nawaz¹⁰, Niaz Ali¹, Fazal Rahim⁵, Hamid Ali¹¹, Imran Khan¹², Siddiq Ur Rahman¹³, Noha M Abu Bakr Elsaid^{14

15}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Botany, Hazara University, Mansehra 21300, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
² Department of Botany, PMAS-Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
³ William L. Brown Center, Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
⁴ Department of Botany, Khushal Khan Khattak University, Karak, KP, Pakistan.
⁵ Department of Botany, Bacha Khan University, Charsada, KP, Pakistan.
⁶ Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo 11566, Egypt.
⁷ Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, King Salman International University, South Sinai 46511, El Tor, Egypt.
⁸ Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, P. No. 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.
⁹ Center of Plant Sciences and Biodiversity, University of Swat, Swat, KP, Pakistan.
¹⁰ Department of Botany, Kohat University of Science & Technology, Kohat, KP, Pakistan.
¹¹ Department of Biotechnology & Genetic Engineering, Hazara University, Mansehra, KP, Pakistan.
¹² College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
¹³ Department of Computer Science & Bioinformatics, Khushal Khan Khattak University, Karak, KP, Pakistan.
¹⁴ Department of Public Health, Community, Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia 41511, Egypt.
¹⁵ Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, King Salman International University, South Sinai 46511, El Tor, Egypt.

Abstract

Background: Since the beginning of civilization, medicinal plants have been used in human healthcare systems. Studies have been conducted worldwide to evaluate their efficacy, and some of the results have triggered the development of plant-based medications. Rural women in Pakistan frequently experience gynaecological disorders due to malnutrition and heavy physical work during pregnancy. Due to the low economic status, the remoteness of the area, and the lack of modern health services, herbal therapy for gynaecological disorders is common among the indigenous tribes of the study area.

Methods: Field surveys were carried out from April 2018 to October 2020 to collect data regarding medicinal plants used for different gynaecological disorders. A semistructured questionnaire was used to collect ethnogynaecological data.

Results: In total, 67 medicinal plant species belonging to 38 families are being used to treat 26 different gynaecological problems. The herbaceous growth form and the Lamiaceae family were recorded with the maximum number of plant species (42 species and 7 species, respectively). Leaves are the most highly utilized plant part, with 16 species. In the case preparation method, decoction was the dominant method (25 species, 36.76%). The informants reported the maximum number of species for the treatment of irregular menstrual flow as 11 species (15.28%). The highest relative frequency of citation (RFC) value was obtained for Acacia modesta (0.37), and the use value (UV) for Tecomella undulata (0.85). The highest informants' consensus factor (ICF) value (1.0) was obtained for emmenagogue and tonic each after delivery. The highest consensus index (CI%) value was calculated for Acacia modesta (36.92%). The Lamiaceae had the highest family importance value (FIV) (98.46%).

Conclusion: This is the first ever quantitative study focusing mainly on ethnogynaecological study conducted in the tribal areas of North Waziristan which highlights the importance of traditional herbal remedies for their basic medical requirements. The results of this study would serve as a baseline for advanced phytochemical and pharmacological screening, as well as conservationists for further studies.