A Survey of Medicinal Plant Usage by Folk Medicinal Practitioners in Seven Villages of Ishwardi Upazilla, Pabna District, Bangladesh

Folk medicinal practitioners (Kavirajes) are the primary health-care providers to substantial segments of the rural population as well as the urban population of Bangladesh. Every village of Bangladesh has at least one practicing Kaviraj. The Kavirajes rely primarily on simple formulations of medicinal plants for treatment of ailments. While overall, simple ailments are treated by the Kavirajes, occasionally complicated ailments, which are hard to cure with allopathic medicine, are also treated by them. In previous ethnomedicinal surveys, we have observed considerable variation in the use of medicinal plants by the Kavirajes of different regions of Bangladesh, which extended to Kavirajes of even the same village or adjoining villages. To get a comprehensive picture of the medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes, it is therefore necessary to conduct surveys of individual villages. The objective of the present study was to conduct a survey among Kavirajes of seven villages in Ishwardi Upazilla (sub-district), which is in Pabna district of Bangladesh. A total of 80 plants distributed into 45 families were observed to be used by the Kavirajes. The Euphorbiaceae and the the Lamiaceae family contributed 7 plants per family, followed by the Apocynaceae family with 5 plants, and the Araceae, Asteraceae, Combretaceae, Menispermaceae, and Solanaceae family with 3 plants each. The Kavirajes used both whole plant as well as plant parts for treatment of ailments. Leaves constituted 35.1% of the total uses, followed by roots at 17.5%, and barks and fruits at 11.4% each. Twenty one plants were used for treatment of gastrointestinal disorders like constipation, dysentery, loss of appetite, and acidity. Thirteen plants were used to treat skin disorders like eczema, pimples, and itches, while twelve plants were used for treatment of respiratory tract disorders like asthma, coughs, and colds. The Kavirajes also treated hepatic disorders (e.g. jaundice), sexual disorders, pain, fever, bleeding from cuts and wounds, bone fractures, eye disorders, ear problems, toothache, loss of hair, hemorrhoids, gonorrhea, infections, physical weakness, helminthiasis, leprosy, vomiting, snake bite, gall bladder stones, burns, chicken pox, malaria, rheumatic fever, diphtheria, anemia, rheumatism, menstrual problems, urinary problems, and physical weakness. Other complicated diseases treated by the Kavirajes, included diabetes, hypertension, heart disorders, tumors, malnutrition of fetus, and leukemia. The medicinal plants used by the Kavirajes can form a rich source of plants for further scientific studies leading to discovery of novel therapeutic compounds.