title: Application of Ethnobotanical Indices on the Use of Traditional Medicines against Common Diseases.
abstract: The present study was aimed at documenting the detailed ethnomedicinal knowledge of an unexplored area of Pakistan. Semistructured interviews were taken with 55 informants randomly chosen regarding detailed ethnomedicinal and sociocultural information. The study exposed 67 medicinal plant species used to prepare 110 recipes and the major modes of herbal formulation were decoction and powdering (20% each). The disease categories with the highest Fic values were gastrointestinal and dermatological (0.87 each). The study determined 3 plant species, i.e., Acacia modesta Wall., Caralluma tuberculata R.Br., and Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal with a FL of 100%. DMR results showed that Olea ferruginea (Sol.) Steud. ranked first, Morus alba L. ranked second, and Melia azedarach L. ranked third. Among the 55 informants, the male concentration was high (61%) and most of them were over 40 years old while a leading quantity of respondents (45%) was uneducated. There is a dire need to take necessary steps for the conservation of important medicinal plants by inhibiting overgrazing and providing alternate fuel resources. Young generations should be educated regarding the importance of ethnomedicinal knowledge and plants with high Fic and FL values should be further checked chemically and pharmacologically for future exploration of modern medicine.
authors: Department of Botany, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat 26000, Pakistan.
authors: Imran
authors: I
authors: Khan
authors: Riyadh Community College, King Saud University, Riyadh 11437, Saudi Arabia.
authors: Naser M
authors: NM
authors: AbdElsalam
authors: Riyadh Community College, King Saud University, Riyadh 11437, Saudi Arabia ; Department of Chemistry, Biomedical Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Helwan University, P.O. Box 11792, Helwan, Egypt.
authors: Hassan
authors: H
authors: Fouad
authors: Department of Botany, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat 26000, Pakistan.
authors: Akash
authors: A
authors: Tariq
authors: Department of Chemistry, Government College Ara Khel, FR Kohat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 26000, Pakistan.
authors: Riaz
authors: R
authors: Ullah
authors: Department of Botany, Kohat University of Science and Technology, Kohat 26000, Pakistan.
authors: Muhammad
authors: M
authors: Adnan