Ethno-gynecological knowledge of medicinal plants used by Baluch tribes, southeast of Baluchistan, Iran

The objective of this study was to establish a regional profile of the indigenous knowledge on the treatment of various gynaecological disorders by Baluch Tribes of Iran. The ethical guidelines adopted by the International Society of Ethnobiology were strictly followed during the field survey. Data were collected during 2013-2014 based on interviews, group conversations and close consultation with local informants. Participants were selected using the snowball sampling technique. Secondary methods of data collection were also used for triangulation. A quantitative analysis including the informant consensus factor and use value was performed to evaluate the medicinal plants. A total of 33.3% Baluch women reported high affiliation with herbal remedies for gynaecological problems, while others attribute was also positive for medicinal plants. A total of eighty plant species belonging to 43 botanical families were documented. Levels of Relative frequency of citation decreased as follows: Nigella sativa (0.92), Pistacia atlantica(0.91), Anethum graveolens (0.88), Carum carvi(0.87) and Trigonella foenum-graecum (0.85). Results of the informant consensus factor showed that menstrual problems (0.87) and vaginal infection (0.74) were the most common problems of women in the studied area. The use value and informant consensus factor validated that the relative importance of plant species and shared knowledge of herbal therapies between Baluch womenfolk of this area is still rich.

Gynecology; Medicinal plant; Informant consensus factor; Baluch; Iran