An ethnopharmacological survey of medicinal plants used in the traditional treatment of human infertility in eastern Algeria

Objective: To summarize medicinal plants used in the treatment of couple fertility disorders. Methods: An ethnopharmacological survey was conducted with 30 traditional healers from some localities of Skikda region in eastern Algeria. A standard questionnaire was used in the interview which focused mainly: the treated fertility disorders, the used medicinal plants species, parts used, and preparation methods. The relative frequency of citation and percentages of infertility troubles were calculated and analyzed. Results: The most important treated disorders in men were dysfunction of libido (44.22%), low sperm concentration and motility (25.33%), low semen volume (17.67%) and prostate disorders (5.66%). Women were treated mainly for menstruation disorders (35.32%), breast problems (29.53%) and sexual asthenia (25.82%). The survey identified 28 plant species belonging to 15 families, used by different ethnic groups, particularly women (58.00%), to address different fertility disorders. Three plant families were largely used viz Lamiaceae, Asteraceae, and Apiaceae. In term of relative frequency citation, ten dominated plant species were: Zingiber officinalis L. (0.96), Nigella sativa L. (0.83), Lepidium sativum L. (0.80), Capsicum annuum L. (0.60), Cuminum cyminum L. (0.56), Origanum vulgare L. (0.55), Allium sativum L. (0.50), Petroselinum sativum L. (0.43), Salvia officinalis L. (0.42), and Foeniculum vulgare L. (0.40). A number of investigated plants were scientifically confirmed by phytochemical and pharmacological studies to have one or more significant effects on couple fertility. However, much controversy was found in literature concerning the efficacy of some cited plants. Conclusions: The study highlights the important use of medicinal plants in management of couple infertility in eastern Algeria. More experimental studies are recommended to confirm or to refute these traditional uses and to ascertain the safety of these medicinal plants to consumers.