A survey of medicinal plants used by traditional healers of Madaripur district, Bangladesh

Folk medicinal practitioners or Kavirajes use medicinal plants for treatment of various ailments in Bangladesh and this usage of medicinal plants vary from region to region. The objective of this present study was to conduct an ethnomedicinal survey amongst the Kavirajes of Madaripur district, Bangladesh. Some of these medicinal plant species (with ailments treated given in parenthesis) included Sida cordifolia (fever, spermatorrhea, paralysis), Justicia adhatoda (astringent, bronchitis), Phyllanthus niruri (urinary tract problems, jaundice), Ficus hispida (astringent, diarrhea), Solanum xanthocarpum (catarrh, fever, pain in chest, coughs), Piper ornatum (ulcer, biliary disorders), Barleria prionitis (fever, glandular swelling), Hibiscus abelmoschus (itches, tonic), Desmodium gangeticum (tonic, coughs, astringent), Miscanthus sinensis (nerve disorders), Terminalia chebula (jaundice, urinary troubles, coughs), Terminalia arjuna (heart disorders, tonic, astringent), Ziziphus mauritiana (coughs), Mikania cordata (chronic bronchitis, coughs), Hibiscus rosa-sinensis (emollient, aperient), and Clitoria ternatea (tonic, laxative). The medicinal plants present considerable potential for discovery and development of newer drugs.