Ethnopharmacological usage of medicinal plants in genitourinary infections by residents of Chapada do Araripe, Crato, Ceará – Brazil

Objective: To determine the ethnopharmacological use of plants in the treatment of urogenital tract infections (UTIs) by women living in the city of Crato, located in Chapada do Araripe, in the interior of the State of Ceará, Brazil. Methods: A cross-sectional study, with a quantitative approach, pe...

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Published inRevista brasileira em promoção da saúde = Brazilian journal in health promotion Vol. 25; no. 3; p. 278
Main Authors Dayanne Rakelly de Oliveira, Francisco Elizaudo de Brito Júnior, Larissa Alves Sampaio, Torres, Jamille Cansanção, Andreza Guedes Barbosa Ramos, Alaiane Abreu Nunes
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Fortaleza Universidade de Fortaleza - Centro de Ciências da Saúde 01.01.2012
Subjects
Cooking
Females
Flowers & plants
Health care
Herbal medicine
Infections
Maceration
Pain
Pharmacology
Population
Pregnancy
Sexually transmitted diseases
STD
Sustainable development
Urogenital system
Womens health
Brazil
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Summary:Objective: To determine the ethnopharmacological use of plants in the treatment of urogenital tract infections (UTIs) by women living in the city of Crato, located in Chapada do Araripe, in the interior of the State of Ceará, Brazil. Methods: A cross-sectional study, with a quantitative approach, performed from September to November, 2010, with 25 residents of Chapada do Araripe, who use and/or recommend plants for the treatment of UTIs. Results: The prevalent characteristics of the informants were: age-group between 56 and 60 years old, married, all of them farmers with a monthly income of minimum wage, and most of them with incomplete schooling. Nine plant species were identified as being used by the population against infection, inflammation and pain. The most common forms of usage are the decoction, cooking and the maceration of leaves and barks. Barbatimão and mallow were the most reported species by informants. Conclusion: Popular medicine is greatly adopted by traditional communities and represents an incalculable cultural wealth which should be preserved and evaluated to assure sustainable development. Information brought out by this research may be useful in further pharmacological studies.
ISSN:1806-1222
1806-1230
DOI:10.5020/2256