Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants used to Treat Cardiovascular Disorders in Ghasemloo Valley of Urmia City.

Aims: Many pharmaceutical plants belonging to this region are used as the traditional drug by traditional physicians of the Urmia city in order to treat signs of disorders and cardiovascular system diseases.

Background: The Ghasemloo valley located in Urmia city is one of the typical areas in northwestern Iran and includes many pharmaceutical and plant species.

Objective: Many pharmaceutical plants belonging to this region are used as the traditional drug by traditional physicians of the Urmia city in order to treat several symptoms of disorders and cardiovascular system diseases.

Method: A study was performed among 35 grocers in Urmia city to identify effective and famous pharmaceutical plants in the treatment of cardiovascular and related diseases. Firstly, a complete list of Urmia grocers was prepared by the Food and Drug Administrator of the Urmia University of Medical Sciences. The direct observation and interview, alongside collecting herbarium samples of usual and effective indigenous medicinal plants, were used to identify disorders and different signs of cardiovascular diseases. Questionnaires included personal information of grocers, and completed indigenous plants list containing information, including the plant's local name, the used organ, method of use, and the traditional therapeutic effect. Herbarium samples mentioned in the questionnaire were collected from the region and sent to the Jahad-e-Keshavarzi Research Centers and the Agriculture Faculty of Urmia university to determine the genus and species. After identifying and confirming the plant species, data related to the plant and results of cardiovascular research conducted on them were collected and recorded with reference to valid scientific sites. Data were entered into the Excel 2010 program and then analyzed.

Result: 60 medicinal plants of 26 families in Urmia were identified as effective in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases from interviews and questionnaires; some plants mentioned in this study had known traditional therapeutic effects on cardiovascular disorders in the literature and some were identified with new effects. Results showed that the most therapeutic effects in cardiovascular diseases belonged to families Rosaceae (15%), Fabaceae (13%), Asteraceae (13%), and Apiaceae (10%). The most used organs of plants were the leave (23%) and fruit (19%). Plants were used mainly as an infusion (68%) in the traditional method. Most plants of this study were used to treat the blood cholesterol (29%), hypertension (9%), blood coagulation, prevention of bleeding (9%), and decrease in abdominal fat (9%).

Conclusion: Some herbs introduced in this study have new therapeutic effects introduced for the first time. It is necessary to study the therapeutic effects of indigenous plants presented in this research in order to prove studied and mentioned therapeutic effects and provide a study field for researchers in relation to identifying effective substances and studying claimed clinical effects of these plants on different cardiovascular diseases.