Treatment Of Infertility Using Naturopathic Approach
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Treatment Of Infertility Using Naturopathic Approach
ABSTRACT
Approximately 200 million women in underdeveloped countries have unmet contraception needs. Due to unmet contraceptive needs, 20 million women worldwide have unsafe abortions each year. The overall goal of the study was to assess the reproductive therapy qualities of a naturopathic method in female Winstar rats.
The study recorded naturopathic treatments for reproductive dysfunctions, as well as the pharmacological efficacy, phytochemical substances, extract effect on reproductive parameters, reproductive hormonal profile, and ovarian and uterine histomorphology of the selected plants.
An ethnobotanical survey was conducted utilising questionnaires and focus group discussions. In total, 80 herbalists were interviewed. The pharmacological efficacy and phytochemical components of the two most commonly referenced plants, Croton menyharthi and Uvariodendron kirkii, were determined.
The antifertility efficacy of the two plants on mating success, fertility index, gestation length, litter size, and body weight was assessed using three treatment regimens on normal-cyclic female winstar rats aged 50-60 days.
Forty-eight plant species from 40 genera and 29 families were identified as useful for the treatment of pregnancy-related problems, menstrual disorders, infertility, fibroids, and as fertility regulators.
Thirteen herbs (27.08%) were used to cure infertility, while eleven (22.92%) were utilised to regulate female fertility. Uvariodendron kirkii and Croton menyharthii caused severe disruptions in the oestrus cycle in rats.
Plant extracts significantly lengthened metestrus (P<0.01) and diestrus (P<0.001) phases compared to the control. Oestrus and proestrus phases showed significant declines (P<0.05). The plant extracts resulted in a dose-dependent substantial drop in fertility index and implantation index.
Croton menyharthii at 500mg/kg and Uvariodendron kirkii at 800mg/kg increased gestation length significantly (P<0.05) compared to the control (22 ± 1). Uvariodendron kirkii and Croton menyharthii aqueous extracts significantly reduced litter size in groups 1 and 3 at both dose levels as compared to the negative control. Both plant extracts, however, caused no significant reduction in litter size in group 2 at either dose level.
Chapter one
INTRODUCTION
Women’s reproductive health has improved dramatically in the developing world, with an increase in the usage of traditional fertility-regulating measures observed. Nonetheless, many women in remote areas do not have access to information, supplies, or services that could help them avoid unwanted births and plan the number and timing of intended pregnancies.
Globally, approximately 137 million women have an unmet need for contraception (Gill et al., 2007), and this unmet need is especially significant in Sub-Saharan Africa, where contraception use remains low due to a general lack of access to contraceptive choices (Adebisi and Bello, 2011).
Unintended pregnancy is a combination of unwanted and mistimed pregnancies. Many married women in developing countries do not have access to their preferred contraceptive method for spacing or limiting family size, and the options are even more limited for unmarried women and adolescents, who have limited access to reproductive health information and counselling and are frequently denied contraceptive services.
Some of the hurdles to contraception usage in developing nations include fear of side effects and health issues, insufficient access to reproductive health information and services, religious views, fear of societal condemnation, opposition from spouses and family, and cost, which is an issue for the poor.
The intense desire to control fertility, along with a lack of access to effective contraception, results in the highest number of unwanted pregnancies, which leads to unsafe abortions.
Globally, 205 million pregnancies are unplanned, and roughly 20 million unsafe abortions are performed annually, resulting in a 13% maternal death rate. 97% of these are dangerous.
Abortions occur in impoverished nations (Sedgh and Henshaw, 2010), and 67,000 women die.
yearly due to unsafe abortions (Ahman and Shah, 2007). According to a Nigerian health survey conducted from 2008 to 2009, 43% of births in the previous five years were reported as unwanted or mistimed by women (Nigeria Demographic Health Survey 2008/09)
and a total of 465,000 unsafe abortions were reportedly procured, with 266 out of 100 000 women dying each year as a result of unsafe abortions, the majority of which were caused by unintended pregnancy (Izugbara et al., 2013).
There is a disparity between actual and desired family size, which leads to unexpected pregnancies. Sixty-six percent of unwanted pregnancies occur among women who do not use any form of contraception. When used correctly, modern contraceptives are both safe and effective.
Many steroidal and non-steroidal substances have been utilised as contraceptives and anti-ovulatory medicines to regulate fertility. The medications, while effective anti-fertility treatments, are not without negative effects.
Skilled health care workers are frequently unavailable in resource-limited situations, therefore methods that allow for non-medical staff delivery may expand access to contraception.
The use of naturopathic techniques for primary healthcare needs has recently received considerable interest, led by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
This curiosity has resulted in greater study into traditional remedies. To address the unmet contraceptive need in Oyo, this study was conducted to validate the anti-fertility potential of Croton menyhathii and Uvariodendron kirkii, which are traditionally taken by women in Oyo. A naturopathic approach’s contraceptive qualities can be attributed to hormonal disturbance of the hypothalamic-pituitary gonadal axis.
1.2 Overall Objective
The overarching goal of the study was to assess fertility treatment in female Winstar rats utilising a naturopathic method.
1.2.1: Specific Objectives
To identify and document naturopathic treatments utilised by Traditional Medicinal Practitioners (TMPs) for reproductive health care in Oyo State, with a focus on female fertility.
Evaluate the anti-fertility efficacy of the two chosen plant extracts on female rat reproductive
Assess the impact of the two plant extracts on the histomorphology of the ovaries.
Determine the effect of the two plant extracts on reproductive hormones
Determine the acute toxicity and phytochemical composition of the two plants.
1.3 Null Hypothesis
Croton menyharthii and Uvariodendron kirkii plants do not have fertility-regulating properties.
1.4 Justification.
Reproductive disorders and ailments account for 18% of the worldwide disease burden among women of reproductive age and are the leading cause of maternal mortality in underdeveloped countries (WHO, 2003). Female reproductive problems include pregnancy and its complications, fertility disorders, and menstruation complications.
TMPs by definition do not keep records, and the majority of their information is passed down verbally from generation to generation (Giday et al., 2010). Thus, it is necessary not only to capture indigenous knowledge, but also to investigate the plants in order to give convincing data to support herbalists’ therapeutic efficacy claims (Sofowora, 1993).
In Oyo State (Figure 1), TMPs are commonly consulted due to their extensive indigenous medicinal knowledge base (Kaingu et al., 2011), a tradition that has continued in many rural areas due to inequitable health care delivery.
In Nigeria, 75% of health facilities and professionals are located in cities (WHO, 2005). The national doctor-patient ratio is 1:20,000, but in Oyo State, which has 57 health facilities and a population of 240075 (Nigeria population and housing census report, 2009), the doctor-patient ratio is 1:95,500, indicating a serious shortage of both health facilities and staff in the state (Oyo District Strategic Plan, 2005-2010).
On the other hand, the ratio of TMPs to patients is 1: 987 (Nigeria Population and Housing Census Report, 2009), indicating that TMPs are more widely available.
Locals are treated 90% of the time by clinical officers, who refer emergency cases to Malindi District Hospital, 90 kilometres away. In general, the health industry, especially reproductive health, has numerous obstacles.
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