Ethno-botanical survey of local herbs used for the treatment of malaria fever among the urhobo people in delta State, Nigeria

The local medicinal herbs used in combating malaria among the Urhobo people in Delta state, Nigeria were investigated in this study. The Urhobo people have a rich cultural heritage, which is reflected in the well-developed herbal medicine used to combat malaria and some other common ailments. The survey identified the parts of the medicinal plant used as drug, mode of preparation and mode of administration among the Urhobo people in Delta state. It was observed that some of these plants are used alone or in combination with other plants, which are either taken orally or used for bathing. The study revealed that plant leaves were the main part of plants used by the Urhobo people in the treatment of malaria. The other parts of the plant also used included the stem bark, root bark and whole plant. Information on dosages of the herbs administered to patients varies. The survey was conducted by administering a well-structured questionnaire to select natives who were adjudged by the locals to be knowledgeable in the use of local herbs for medicine. We found out that some plants were more frequently used in treating malaria than others; these plants included Azadirachta indica, Carica papaya, Mangifera indica, Cymbopogon citratus and Citrus aurantifolia. The study showed that 33 plants belonging to 25 families were frequently used than other plants by the Urhobo people of Delta state Nigeria in treatment of malaria fever.