CONCEPT OF “VISANKRAMANA”- A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW ON AYURVEDIC DISINFECTION

Abstract

Ayurveda the ancient science of life emphasizes on prevention of disease and maintenance of health. The personal hygiene plays a pivotal role in controlling the transmission of disease. The disease-causing microorganisms present in our environment and may cause infections. Visankramana (Disinfection) is the procedure explained in Ayurvedic classics to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases. Our ancient Acharya's emphasized the importance of disinfecting the room and articles used by the patients to prevent the communicability of infectious disease. Several traditional techniques such as Dhoopana and have been adopted in the fumigation process to minimize microbial load in the environment to non-pathogenic level. Surgical instruments can be disinfected by traditional methods like Payana, Dhoopana, Parisheka and Agnitapana etc. Similarly, there are various classical references for disinfection of air, water, and land. This suggests that there is lot scope for the researchers to explore and evaluate the efcacy of traditional methods of disinfection.