Conference Abstract | Volume 9 (ConfPro8): Abstract 45 | Published: 07 Oct 2026
Justice Kobina Mensah Ennin1,&, Philip Lartey1, Chris Mawutor Andy Binka2, Michael Opoku-Mireku3, Elizabeth Awini4, Eugene Afreku Boafo5, Francisca Zigah6, Harriet Affran Bonful7
1Herbal Medicine Department, Eastern Regional Hospital, Koforidua, Ghana; 2University Hospital, Legon, Ghana; 3School of Public Health and Allied Sciences, Catholic University of Ghana; 4Research and Development Division, Ghana Health Service, Accra, Ghana; 5Department of Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy, School of Pharmacy, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana; 6Department of Pharmacy, Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, Ghana; 7Department of Epidemiology and Disease Control, School of Public Health, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra, Ghana
&Corresponding author: Justice Kobina Mensah Ennin, Herbal Medicine Department, Eastern Regional Hospital, Koforidua, Ghana, Email: jstcennin@gmail.com, ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-9138-4615
Received: 11 Mar 2026, Accepted: 30 Aug 2026, Published: 07 Oct 2026
Domain: Non-Communicable Disease Epidemiology
Keywords: Hypertension, diabetes mellitus, herbal medicine, orthodox medicine, concurrent use
©Justice Kobina Mensah Ennin et al. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health (ISSN: 2664-2824). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution International 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Cite this article: Justice Kobina Mensah Ennin et al., Prevalence, patterns and predictors of concurrent use of herbal and orthodox medicines among hypertensive and diabetic patients in selected hospitals in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Journal of Interventional Epidemiology and Public Health. 2026;9(ConfPro8):45. https://doi.org/10.37432/JIEPH-CONFPRO8-0045
Non-communicable diseases such as hypertension and diabetes are increasing in Ghana, leading many patients to combine herbal medicine (HM) and orthodox medicine (OM) that may result in potential herb–drug interactions. Objective of this study is to assess the prevalence, patterns, and factors associated with concurrent use among patients with hypertension and diabetes in Eastern Region of Ghana.
An analytical cross-sectional design was employed, using semi-structured questionnaire for data collection in three selected hospitals in Eastern Region of Ghana. Systematic random sampling was used to select 420 patients attending diabetes and hypertension clinics in these hospitals. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, chi-square/ fisher’s exact tests, and logistic regression at 5% significance level.
About 21.0% (95% CI: 17.31 – 25.13) of respondents concurrently used HM and OM for the management of hypertension and/or diabetes. Among respondents not concurrently using both therapies for these conditions, 64.5% reported concurrent use for other comorbidities. Key motivating factors for concurrent use include recommendations from family and friends, and the availability of HMs. Top two sources of herbal medicines included Centre for Plant Medicine Research and through self-collection. Non-disclosure of herbal medicine use to healthcare providers was high (88.1%), mainly due to the perception that it was unnecessary or because healthcare providers did not inquire. Significant factors influencing concurrent use of OM and HM after adjusted analysis were; educational level, affordability of orthodox medications, perceived effectiveness and disease type.
Concurrent use of herbal and orthodox medicines is common among patients with hypertension and diabetes in Eastern Region of Ghana. The high level of non-disclosure highlights important patient safety concerns. Strengthening routine clinical enquiry, patient education, and pharmacovigilance is essential to improve safe use. Further research is needed to assess safety profiles and inform guidelines for concurrent use.
Menu