Title

Assessment of knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) regarding siddha medicines by veterinarians in Tamil Nadu: A cross-sectional observational study

Authors

Varshini Kumar*¹, Selladurai Elansekaran¹, Venkataraman Krishnamurthy², Gnanaraj Johnson Christian¹, Murugan Ramamurthy¹, Venkatachalam Srinivasan¹, R. Gayatri¹ & Ambalavanan Shakthi Paargavi¹

Affiliation

¹Department of Noi Naadal, National Institute of Siddha, Affiliated to the Tamil Nadu Dr. MGR Medical University, Tambaram Sanatorium, Chennai-47, Tamil Nadu, India; ²Department of Veterinary Pharmacology Siddha Central Research Institute, Central Council for Research in Siddha, Chennai-106, Tamil Nadu, India; *Corresponding author

Email

Varshini Kumar - E-mail: varshini98kumar@gmail.com; Phone: +91 8248896427
Selladurai Elansekaran - E-mail: sekarnis78@gmail.com
Venkataraman Krishnamurthy - E-mail: venkat.vetpharm@gmail.com
Gnanaraj Johnson Christian - E-mail: christianvijila@gmail.com
Murugan Ramamurthy - E-mail: ramsnis@gmail.com
Venkatachalam Srinivasan - E-mail: seenunis47@gmail.com
R. Gayatri - E-mail: dr.gayatri.nis@gmail.com
Ambalavanan Shakthi Paargavi - E-mail: spaargavi@gmail.com

Article Type

Research Article

Date

Received September 1, 2025; Revised September 30, 2025; Accepted September 30, 2025, Published September 30, 2025

Abstract

The one health approach is gaining momentum in India, prompting interest in traditional systems like Siddha and Ethnoveterinary medicine for animal care due to their affordability, safety, and holistic principles. This study explores the application of Siddha medicine and ethnoveterinary practices in veterinary care, drawing insights from ancient texts such as Maattu Vagadam. A KAP survey of 150 veterinarians in Tamil Nadu revealed that 64% had used Siddha treatments, with 88.5% expressing satisfaction and 94.8% reporting no adverse reactions. Despite 68.7% lacking formal training in ethnoveterinary methods, over half of the respondents reported ease in applying external therapies and effectiveness during epidemics. Furthermore, 84.7% supported establishing a dedicated Veterinary-Siddha branch, highlighting the potential for integration into modern veterinary practice.

Keywords

Siddha, one health, KAP survey, veterinarians, ethnoveterinary, mattu vagadam

Citation

Kumar et al. Bioinformation 21(9): 2956-2965 (2025)

Edited by

P Kangueane

ISSN

0973-2063

Publisher

Biomedical Informatics

License

This is an Open Access article which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. This is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License.