The nodiagnostic and ethnotherapeutic skills relevant in malaria management: a case study of Embu county,Kenya

Abstract

Malaria tops the list of the most commonly encountered parasitic infections, and the most treatable disease by herbalists in Embu County. Indigenous knowledge relevant to disease diagnosis, treatment and prevention has not been documented in this region. The study was done between January and July, 2014 using a semi-structured questionnaire administered to herbalists who voluntarily shared information. A total of 48 herbalists (15 females and 33 males), aged between 25 and 92 years participated. Fourty nine species (distributed in 27 families) were used in malaria treatment and eight species (distributed in seven families) were used to prevent mosquito bites. The herbs were administered in form of decoction or concoction. The mosquito repellants were burned, applied on the skin or hanged strategically in the house. The symptoms concurred with widely acceptable malaria signs and symptoms such as headache, vomiting, loss of appetite, joint pains and fever. While 83.3% of the herbalists were aware that malaria is spread by mosquitoes, 4.1% believed that it was caused by consuming mangoes injected by infected mosquitoes. Barks (41.6%) and roots (37.5%) were the most commonly harvested parts, while trees (57.7%) and shrubs (25.9%) were the most commonly used growth forms. Plant species believed to decline in number were Caesalpinia volkensii (52%), Acacia tortilis (31%), Terminalia brownii (21%) and Strychnos henningsii (18%). Their scarcity was attributed to human activities like overexploitation, clearing land for agriculture and cutting trees for charcoal and timber. Medicinal plants play a significant role in malaria treatment and control and indigenous knowledge relevant in malaria diagnosis and prevention is in harmony with the widely acceptable malaria signs and symptoms. Keywords: Malaria, Diagnosis, Treatment, Prevention, Ethnodiagnostic, Herbalist