ARTICLES ON AYURVEDA

An eye-opener through Ayurveda

On Fridays and Sundays, when the chief physician is available, eye patients, both young and old, swarm Nelliakattu Mana in the rural village of Kizhakombu near Koothattukulam in Kerala.

Cases for whom modern medicine has meant nothing more than countless visits to the doctor. With all of them suffering from retinetis pigmentosa (RP), a congenital cataract and diabetes-related eye ailment that leads to complete blindness and for which modern medicine has no remedy, ayurveda may be their only resort.

According to Dr NPP Namboothiri, the chief physician, if diagnosed early, the pigmentation of the retina could be cured fully. But as a majority of the patients take to ayurveda only after trying every other form of treatment, a compete cure becomes impossible. However, further deterioration of the eyes can be stopped and the current level of eye sight can be maintained, he told Business Line.

The situation was the same for those suffering from congenital cataract, for which modern medicine has no treatment besides surgery and which is not possible on infants.

"Even in Ayurveda, surgery was advised in ancient times. However, nobody does it now,'' he said. The treatment for infants has proved successful without any recurrence, he claimed.

The other segment of patients was those with diabetes-related ailments of the eye. "No magic can be done,'' says Namboothiri. "But we can arrest further damage,'' he said.

Raman Pillai (52), a diabetic hailing from a village near Kayamkulam who had undergone laser treatment, came to Namboothiri on the advice of a senior ophthalmologist of the Alapuzha Medical College. He said despite previous treatment, he did not have clear sight.

Another patient who underwent a cornea replacement surgery 18 months ago also came to Namboothiri. Though his sight was still poor -- well near nothing -- after the surgery he could at least see light. According to Namboothiri, more can be done for him.

Marriages within the clan are mainly responsible for the increase in RP cases. Besides, a substantial number of such cases were from the coastal belt, where constant salty winds affect sight. Further, congenital cataract in women is caused by X-rays during pregnancy.

Namboothiri, who is also the senior medical officer at the Government Idukki district ayurvedic hospital at Thodupuzha, had been practising for the past 125 years.

The family's Sreedhareeya Ayurveda Gaveshana Kendram (Ayurveda Research Centre) had developed several drugs, especially for eye treatment, in line with Shalakya Thantram, the chapter covering ear, nose, throat and eyes in the main ayurveda text. This chapter covers the entire neurology, he says.

The drugs manufactured at the Centre are exclusively for patients treated here and not for outside sale. "We have no plans to commercialise our drugs,'' says Namboothiri. The old mana (ancestral home) has been converted into a hospital. A 50-bedded hospital is under construction beside the mana, he said.

At present, the patients who require continuous treatment are accommodated in the available rooms in the mana and then moved into lodges in the nearby town in the Kendram's vehicle. Patients from various parts of the country, including Jammu, came to the Centre for treatment.

Source : THE HINDU

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