Diversity and utilization of medicinal plants used in managing respiratory illnesses in Migori County, Kenya

Abstract

Respiratory illnesses account for 19% of infection cases treated in Kenyan hospitals. Local communities in Kenya depend on medicinal plants to manage various respiratory ailments. This study assessed the diversity and utilization of medicinal plants used in the management of respiratory illnesses in Kuria West, Kuria East, and Suna East in Migori County, Kenya. Data on the utilization of medicinal plants was collected through structured questionnaires administered to purposively selected herbalists. Data on the diversity of medicinal plant species was collected by use of the transect-quadrat technique. Sampling was carried out in 10 m x 10 m quadrats along a transect at 20 m intervals. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 22 was used to analyze data from the questionnaires. Data on diversity was analyzed using the Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index. There were a total of 1032, 499, and 487 medicinal plants in Kuria East, Kuria West, and Suna East respectively. The diversity index was highest in Kuria West at 3.30 and least in Suna East at 2.71. In all three sites, the most dominant species was Leucas aspera. The most commonly utilized family was Asteraceae (16.1%), and Lamiaceae (8.9%). Plant parts that were commonly utilized were leaves (60.7%) followed by roots (25%).