The composition of medicinal plants used for the treatment of skin diseases by the Thai ethnic minority at Muong La nature reserve, Son La province

Abstract

This research aimed to evaluate the composition and use-value of medicinal plants for skin disease treatments according to the Thai ethnic minority’s experiences at Muong La nature reserve, Son La province. The research was carried out under a traditional botanical method from January 2021 to January 2022. The results showed that there were 121 species of medicinal plants belonging to 111 genera  and 56 families of 3 vascular plant divisions. The diversity of medicinal plants for the treatment of skin diseases with survival spectrum was determined as SB = 66.12Ph + 10.74Hm + 9.09Ch + 8.26Th + 5.79Cr. The medicinal plants used by Thai ethnic people for treatments of 11 skin disease groups, including boils, itchy sores, nine meters (nine cheeks), atopic dermatitis, zona… accounted for the highest rate of 86 species (71.07%). Leaves were the most used part of plants for skin disease treatment accounting for 67.77%, followed by trunk parts with 35 species. Two medicinal species (1.65%) at risk of being threatened were identified in Vietnam Red Data Book (2007) and 2 species in the Governmental Decree No. 84/2021/NĐ-CP.