ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL STUDY OF ANTIHYPERTENSIVE IN THE CIATER REGION, SUBANG, WEST JAVA, INDONESIA

Hypertension (HT) is a major risk factor contributing to cardiovascular disease, which is a leading cause of global morbidity and mortality. This research aims to document and preserve the use of ethnomedicinal to treat HT by communities in the Ciater Region, Subang, West Java, Indonesia. Fieldwork was carried out from May to June 2025 using direct interviews, questionnaires, and discussions. Plant species are identified based on standard taxonomic methods, flower morphological characteristics, and where possible, using samples for comparison, as well as consultation with experts and the literature. The plant types obtained were grouped into families according to the Cronquist classification system. Plant names were checked against the Plant List (www.plantlist.org) and the International Plant Name Index (www.ipni.org). This research reports that 30 plant species are commonly used by people in the Ciater Region to treat HT. Among the various plant parts used, leaves (60.0%) are most frequently used in making medicines, followed by rhizomes (16.7%), fruit (10.0%), rind (6.7%), stem, and bark (respectively 3.3%). Meanwhile, the most frequently used preparation methods were decoction (63.3%), followed by infusion (23.3%), and juice (13.3%). The results of this research confirm that people in the Ciater Region still rely heavily on medicinal plants for their health care system, especially for the treatment of HT with the most frequently used parts of the leaves and their use in decoctions and infusions.