Afolayan Anthony J, Grierson Donald S, Mbeng Wilfred O
MPED Research Centre, Department of Botany, University of Fort Hare, Private Bag X1314, Alice 5700, South Africa.
J Ethnopharmacol. 2014 Apr 11;153(1):220-32. doi: 10.1016/j.jep.2014.02.023. Epub 2014 Feb 28.
Skin diseases have been of major concern recently due to the association of skin opportunistic infections and HIV/AIDS, are usually the first sign of HIV infection and conversion to AIDS. More than 90% of HIV-infected individuals develop skin and mucosal complications at some stage during the disease. Although classical medicine is undoubtedly addressing these diseases, the people of the Eastern Cape, South Africa still depend, to a large extent on traditional herbal medicine for the treatment of various diseases. The current study was undertaken to investigate the local peoples characterisation of skin diseases/disorders and to document the medicinal plants used for various skin disorders among the Xhosa-speaking communities of the Amathole District, Eastern Cape.
Information was obtained by interviewing 54 respondents in 7 locations. Collection of the reported medicinal plants from the wild was assisted by the informants and identification of the collected plants specimens was done with the help of floristic works of South Africa. Quantitative methods including the use-value and the informant consensus factor (ICF) were computed for determining the relative importance of species known locally and the homogeneity of the informants׳ knowledge respectively.
Twenty five skin disorders, classified under 5 categories are being treated with the listed medicinal plants in the study area. The highest ICF (0.45) was linked to bacteria-related skin disorders. This category comprised of 57 use citations, 3 skin disorders; with sore throat being the most frequently mentioned (4.2%). In this study, 106 plant species distributed in 61 families and 107 genera were identified as being used to treat one or more of the skin disorders. The species with the highest use-value was Aloe ferox Mill. (Xanthorrhoeaceae) known locally as Umhlaba. The most representative families were Solanaceae and Asteraceae with 6 species each, followed by Fabaceae, Poaceae and Rutaceae (5 species each). The leaves were the most frequently used plant part, followed by the bark (10%) and fruits (7%). Administration of the different plant parts was mostly topical (77%) on the affected area.
A total of twenty five skin disorders/conditions, classified under 5 categories are being treated with the listed medicinal plants in the study area. 106 plant species distributed in 61 families and 107 genera were identified as being used to treat one or more of the skin disorders. The species with the highest use-value was Aloe ferox Mill. (Xanthorrhoeaceae) known locally as Umhlaba. The most representative families were Solanaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae, Poaceae, Rutaceae and Euphorbiaceae. Majority of the plant species were herbs and the leaves were the most frequently used, mostly applied topically as a paste, powder or sap on the affected skin area.
由于皮肤机会性感染与艾滋病毒/艾滋病的关联，皮肤病近来备受关注，通常是艾滋病毒感染及转化为艾滋病的首个迹象。超过90%的艾滋病毒感染者在疾病的某个阶段会出现皮肤和黏膜并发症。尽管传统医学无疑在应对这些疾病，但南非东开普省的人们在很大程度上仍依赖传统草药来治疗各种疾病。本研究旨在调查当地民众对皮肤病/病症的认知，并记录东开普省阿马托勒区讲科萨语社区中用于治疗各种皮肤病症的药用植物。
通过采访7个地点的54名受访者获取信息。在 informant 的协助下从野外采集所报告的药用植物，并借助南非植物志对采集的植物标本进行鉴定。计算了包括使用价值和 informant 共识因子（ICF）在内的定量方法，分别用于确定当地已知物种的相对重要性和 informant 知识的同质性。
研究区域内列出的药用植物正在治疗25种皮肤病，分为5类。最高的ICF（0.45）与细菌相关的皮肤病有关。该类别包括57次使用记录，涉及3种皮肤病；喉咙痛是最常被提及的（4.2%）。在本研究中，确定有106种植物分布在61个科和107个属中，用于治疗一种或多种皮肤病症。使用价值最高的物种是库拉索芦荟（Xanthorrhoeaceae），当地称为Umhlaba。最具代表性的科是茄科和菊科，各有6种，其次是豆科、禾本科和芸香科（各有5种）。叶子是最常使用的植物部位，其次是树皮（10%）和果实（7%）。不同植物部位的给药方式大多是局部涂抹（77%）在受影响区域。
研究区域内列出的药用植物正在治疗总共25种皮肤病/病症，分为5类。确定有106种植物分布在61个科和107个属中，用于治疗一种或多种皮肤病症。使用价值最高的物种是库拉索芦荟（Xanthorrhoeaceae），当地称为Umhlaba。最具代表性的科是茄科、菊科、豆科、禾本科、芸香科和大戟科。大多数植物物种是草本植物，叶子是最常使用的，大多作为糊剂、粉末或汁液局部涂抹在受影响的皮肤区域。
