Swabhava Vipratipatti Adhyaya of Sushruta Sutra Sthana - An explorative study

Abstract

Sushruta Samhita is an ancient Ayurvedic treatise predominantly focused on surgery. Maharshi Sushruta is considered as the father of Indian surgery. Arishtha Vijnana (concepts related to prognosis) has been documented in the chapters 28–33 of Sutra Sthana (section that deals with basic principles of Ayurveda). Swabhava Vipratipatti Adhyaya (SVA) is the 32nd chapter of Sushruta Sutra Sthana (SSS). Various pathological signs and symptoms, which denote fatal consequences, have been documented within seven verses in this chapter. Works are scarce on Arishtha Vijnana mentioned in SSS, and further, exploration is required. The aim of the present study is to explore the prognostic potential of the contents of SVA with the help of contemporary prognostic literature. Various pathological features having poor prognoses such as hypo- and hyper-pigmentation, hypo- and hypertonia, hypo- and hyperthermia, atrophy, hypertrophy, dystrophy, discoloration, sclerosis, ankylosis, dislocations, prolapse, abnormal involuntary movements, “-malacia,” “-megaly,” “micro- and macro-,” anhidrosis and hyperhidrosis, exophthalmos and enophthalmos, ptosis, neuromuscular disorders, lower motor neuron syndromes, autoimmune disorders with systemic manifestations, immunodeficiency syndromes, anorexia, cachexia, sarcopenia, carcinomas, dysfunctional tear syndrome, marasmic kwashiorkor, lymphedema, voice disorders (aphonia, hypophonia, dysphonia, etc.), dacrystic seizures, gastric outlet obstruction, epileptic drop attacks, priapism with cervical cord lesions, Tourette syndrome-plus, trichotillomania, and terminal lucidity can be seen in SVA chapter. The contents of SVA chapter of SSS seem to have prognostic importance, and the present study paves the way for the development of new hypotheses for future testing.