Chaaya vipratipatti chapter of Sushruta sutra sthana: An analysis

Abstract

Sushruta samhita is a popular, ancient Ayurvedic surgical text composed by Maharshi Sushruta around the 6th century BCE. Sushruta samhita does not contain Indriya sthana (prognostic section), hence various emergency conditions associated with poor prognosis or red flags (Arishta lakshana) were documented in Sutra sthana (from the 28th to 33rd chapters). Research in Ayurvedic prognosis is scarce and the prognostic potential of the contents mentioned in Sushruta Sutra Sthana (SSS) requires exploration. Chaaya Vipratipatti Adhyaya (CVA) is the 31st chapter of SSS and it contains the description of various fatal conditions within 32 verses. The present study aimed to explore and analyze the contents documented in the CVA chapter of SSS with the help of contemporary prognostic literature. Thirty-two verses of the current chapter denote various progressive chronic illnesses, carcinomas, opportunistic infections seen in a vulnerable population, cachexia, end-stage organ failure, dementia trajectories, complications of critical illnesses, iatrogenic and idiopathic fatal conditions, and bad omens associated with death and senescence. Various new insights generated by the present explorative study may open the doors for further research into the development of novel prognostic models and factors.