“We Cure Sickle Cell Disease with Herbs”: Perspectives of Herbal Medicine Practitioners Treating Sickle Cell Disease in the Acholi SubRegion

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dc.contributor.authorAwor, Silvia
dc.contributor.authorOpee, Jimmyy
dc.contributor.authorDenis Ocaya,
dc.contributor.authorOcaya, Jimmy
dc.contributor.authorAbola, Benard
dc.contributor.authorMalinga, Geoffrey Maxwell
dc.contributor.authorOryema, Christine
dc.contributor.authorArwenyo, Beatrice
dc.contributor.authorOngwech, Acaye
dc.contributor.authorMusoke, David
dc.contributor.authorNnamuyomba, Proscovia
dc.contributor.authorEpila, Jackie
dc.date.accessioned2025-08-27T13:45:20Z
dc.date.available2025-08-27T13:45:20Z
dc.date.issued2025-07-28
dc.description.abstractBackground: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a genetic blood disorder that results in the deformation of red blood cells under low oxygen conditions, causing vaso-occlusive crises and severe complications. While hydroxyurea has been introduced as a treatment for SCD, herbal medicines remain widely used across Africa. Northern Uganda has a high SCD prevalence of 20.5%, yet limited research exists on alternative treatment options within local communities. This study aimed to explore the perspectives of herbal medicine practitioners in the Acholi sub-region. Methods: We conducted in-depth interviews between October and December 2024 involving 24 herbal medicine practitioners in the Acholi sub-region, selected through referrals and non-probability snowball sampling. All data collected were recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using thematic content analysis, and emerging themes were presented. Results: All participants believed herbal medicine could cure SCD, and the majority reported successfully treating patients. However, some practitioners remembered some patients who reported being sick with sickle cell crises many years after the “cure”. “When they report improvement, I stop medication after some time…” thereafter, “I encourage them to go to the hospital, but they do not. They can stay without falling sick for a long time and declare themselves healed”. Findings suggest herbal medicines are commonly used for SCD management in the Acholi sub-region. Most herbal medicine practitioners rely on the hospital diagnoses, although a few can tell who has sickle cell disease by looking at or touching them. A lot of mistrust exists between herbal medicine practitioners, the government, and researchers. This hinders efforts to integrate traditional medicine into mainstream healthcare and limits opportunities for scientific validation. Conclusion: Herbal medicine practitioners believe herbs can treat sickle cell disease; however, further research is needed to investigate the nature of these herbs and their mechanisms of action, thereby facilitating the integration of herbal medicine into conventional care. We discuss some implications of the study for practice and policy
dc.description.sponsorshipGulu University staff development partly funded the tuition for the PhD project, while no funding was provided for proposal development, data collection, and analysis.
dc.identifier.citationSilvia Awor et al. Safety and efficacy of herbal medicines for the management of sickle cell disease in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PAMJ-One Health. 2024;15(22). 10.11604/pamj-oh.2024.15.22.42915
dc.identifier.issn1178-2390
dc.identifier.other: https://doi.org/10.2147/JMDH.S534707
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.one-health.panafrican-med-journal.com/content/article/15/22/full
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14270/603
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherDovePress, Taylor & Francis Group
dc.subjectsickle cell disease
dc.subjectherbal medicine
dc.subjectalternative treatment
dc.subjecttraditional medicine
dc.subjectNorthern Uganda
dc.subjectAfrica
dc.title“We Cure Sickle Cell Disease with Herbs”: Perspectives of Herbal Medicine Practitioners Treating Sickle Cell Disease in the Acholi SubRegion
dc.typeArticle

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