Abstract

MORPHOLOGICAL COMPARISON OF WHITE RATS FED STEEPING WATER FROM DRIED GEDI (ABELMOSCHUS MANIHOT L.) LEAVES WITH CONTROL DURING PREGNANCY AND BIRTH

Dita Yolanda Pasaribu, Dingse Pandiangan*, Juliandri Sari Lebang and Nelson
Nainggolan

ABSTRACT

Gedi leaves have long been used in traditional medicine for a varietyof health problems, including support during pregnancy. This studywas conducted to understand the potential morphological effects ofgiving water steeping dried Gedi leaves in female rats during thegestation period. This research method used 24 female rats dividedinto two groups: an experimental group given steeping water fromdried Gedi leaves with a concentration of 2 g / 200 ml and a controlgroup that was only given ordinary water (drinking water). Dailygiven 100 mL of steeping water and drinking water per 1 rat. Thesemice were monitored during the gestation and birth periods and themorphological and behavioral parameters of the mice. Calculated thenumber of mouse pups born, the number of defective, eaten by themother, and who died up to 1 week after birth. The results showed differences between thetwo groups. The treatment group showed less weight gain, death occurred at about 75%,childbirth bleeding, childbirth was faster (21-25 days), the number of children who survivedwas lower, abnormal movements, pale eyes, watery smuggles, foot paralysis, convulsions,unusual movements and open wounds were found in the head and face area. In addition, thereproductive organs in the experimental group also showed different characteristics comparedto the control group. This discovery indicates that applying steeping water-dried Gedi leavescan affect the morphology of female mice during pregnancy and birth. These findings haveimportant implications in the context of pregnancy care and reproductive health in humans and could form the basis for further research in the development of alternative therapies based on herbal plants.

Keywords: Steeping Water, Gedi Leaf, Pregnancy, Birth, White Rat.