Traditional Medicine in Asia

Traditional Medicine in Asia
although the initial healing time is longer.
It is an effective, ambulatory and safe
alternative treatment for patients with
fistula-in-ano, the main advantage being
that general anaesthesia is avoided and the
chance of recurrence of the problem is nil.
Another highly acclaimed procedure in
Ayurveda refers to Panchakarma, which
constitutes a part of the therapeutic
approach in the treatment of diseases as
well as for the prevention and promotion
of health care. Panchakarma therapy
comprises five purificatory and therapeutic
procedures consisting of oilation and
fomentation of the body followed by
medicated emesis, purgation, medicated
enemata, nasal insufflation and blood
letting. Five modified procedures of oilation
and fomentation of the body have come
to be known as Keraliya Panchakarma.
These include Sirodhara (dribbling of oil on
forehead), Sarvangaseka (dribbling of oil
on the whole body while massage is done)
Pinda sweda (fomentation with hot
medicated balls of cooked rice, etc.).
Annalepa (besmearing of cooked and
medicated rice on the whole body) and
Sirolepa (application of thick medicated
paste on the crown of the head). These are
followed by specific dietary measures each
time. Panchakarma has been used in
treating many critical diseases like diabetes,
cardio-vascular diseases, hypertension,
arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis,
and degenerative disorders.
Both these procedures have been
advocated by the Department of Indian
Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy for
being extended to allopathic hospitals
where large numbers of patients
congregate. Panchakarma has been found
to give significant relief well beyond what
drugs and physiotherapy can achieve,
particularly for symptoms and ailments
caused by neurological and neuromus-
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cular and certain orthopaedic disorders.
Ksharasootra has provided an alternative
for those patients who either do not
want surgery or who have encountered
recurrence of the problem after conventional
surgery. In fact, it has been seen at
the KEM Hospital, a large allopathic
hospital in Mumbai, that cases of fistulain-ano
undertaking surgery have declined
considerably ever since Kshar-Sutra has
been offered as an alternative. The cost of
these measures is nominal given the
outstanding relief they have given patients.
There are applications similar to
Panchakarma available throughout the
traditional system of medicine in most
countries of South-East Asia which would
be worth incorporating in general hospital
wards and other in-patient facilities.
Folk Medicine and Tribal
Remedies
Every country has its own list of traditional
remedies and countries need to document
these after observing local people and their
practices. This is important because this
information is often the foundation of larger
discoveries and inventions, and since this
information is passed down by word of
mouth, it is likely to be lost forever. It is
important to engage botanists, foresters
and NGOs working in this area to prepare
lists of such tribal, folk and village remedies.
In India, the Central Council for
Research in Ayurveda and Siddha
(CCRAS), 38 and the Central Council for
Research in Unani Medicine (CCRUM)
have observed and documented over
10,000 such remedies, although not all
of them can be used and not all the plants
are readily available. Yet, these remedies
represent the knowledge of the people and
the intellectual property of the country.
Unless these are documented, it will be
difficult to give benefit to the country and