Effect of Rasayana in Communicable Diseases: A Review

A number of endemic communicable diseases present a serious public health hazard in India. India is going through a period of transition, both epidemiological and demographic transition. The expectancy of life has increased, with consequent rise in degenerative diseases of aging and life-styles. Nevertheless, communicable diseases are still dominant and constitute major public health issues. Due to low socio economical standard, poor hygienic conditions and population explosion, communicable diseases have become a serious threat to the society in our developing country. Rasayana therapy is particularly helpful in management of such a disorder where immunity and infections are playing central role. As per Ayurvedic principles immunity of a person can be enhanced by use of proper diet and lifestyle along with a proper use of Rasayana. Rasayana is actually that which increases the essence of each Dhatu starting from Rasa. Taking Rasayana is helpful to increase the immunity of person to keep him away from communicable diseases. They are of two types Urjaskara (enhance the general immunity) and Roganuta (used in specific disease conditions). There are many Rasayanas used to improve the immunity and cure diseases like Shilajatu Rasayana for Prameha, Lauha in Pandu, Amalaki, Haridra, Chyavanprash etc

Faulty Dietary Habits vis-Ã -vis Acne Vulgaris: An Epidemiological Study

Background: In day to day life, person consumes an incompatible diet and faulty food habits which leads to most of the diseases. Yuvanapidaka (Acne vulgaris) is one of the common skin disease which is affected by faulty dietary intake.Aims and Objective: To conduct a survey study on faulty dietary habits in Acne vulgaris patients and to find out cause-effect relationship between them.Materials and Methods: Total 210 patients having signs and symptoms of Acne vulgaris were selected from NIA O.P.D., I.P.D., various camps in Jaipur & certain junk food outlets. Patients were screened on the basis of specially prepared questionnaires.Results: On survey study, 100% patients were consuming Junk food & dairy products & incompatible diet. Maximum no. of patients was taking high glycemic index diets which play an important role in aggravation of acne.Conclusion: Maximum prevalence of faulty dietary habits was found in patients. So it was concluded that dairy products, incompatible diets, high glycemic index diet, junk foods which is responsible for formation of acne vulgaris.Â

Development of solid dispersion systems of dapivirine to enhance its solubility

Dapivirine, formerly known as TMC 120, is a poorly-water soluble anti-HIV drug, currently being developed as a vaginal microbicide. The clinical use of this drug has been limited due to its poor solubility. The aim of this study was to design solid dispersion systems of Dapivirine to improve its solubility. Solid dispersions were prepared by solvent and fusion methods. Dapivirine release from the solid dispersion system was determined by conducting in-vitro dissolution studies. The physicochemical characteristics of the drug and its formulation were studied using Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC), powder X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). A significant improvement in drug dissolution rate was observed with the solid dispersion systems. XRD, SEM and DSC results indicated the transformation of pure Dapivirine which exists in crystalline form into an amorphous form in selected solid dispersion formulations. FTIR and HPLC analysis confirmed the absence of drugexcipient interactions. Solid dispersion systems can be used to improve the dissolution rate of Dapivirine. This improvement could be attributed to the reduction or absence of drug crystallinity, existence of drug particles in an amorphous form and improved wettability of the drug

AYUSH-64 as add-on to standard care in asymptomatic and mild cases of COVID-19: A randomized controlled trial

Background: The evidence on the efficacy and safety of Ayurveda interventions as add-on to the standard conventional care for COVID-19 is limited. This study was planned to explore the potential of AYUSH-64 as add-on to conventional care in improving the clinical recovery and negative RT-PCR conversion in asymptomatic and mild COVID-19 cases. Materials and Methods: An open-label randomized controlled study was conducted at Government Medical College, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India with a sample size of 60 participants. In this study, asymptomatic or mild COVID-19 patients were randomized and allocated into intervention and control group in 1:1 ratio. AYUSH-64 two capsules (500 mg each) were administered thrice daily, after food with water for 30 days along with standard care in the intervention group, while the control group received only standard care. The effect of the interventions was assessed in terms of negative RT-PCR for COVID-19, clinical cure rate and inflammatory cytokines. Outcome measures: Primary outcome was the time to attain negative RT-PCR for COVID-19 and proportion of participants turned RT-PCR negative for COVID-19 at 7th, 15th, 22nd and 30th day respectively in the intervention group compared to the control group. Secondary outcomes were the proportion of participants who attained clinical recovery at 7th, 15th, 22nd, and 30thday; improvement in laboratory parameters on the 30th day (as compared to baseline) and incidence of Adverse Drug Reactions/Adverse Events (ADRs/AEs). The data was compared within group using paired sample t-test/ Wilcoxon signed rank test and between group using independent sample t-test/Mann-Whitney test. Results: Statistically significant difference was not observed in the proportion of participants who turned RT-PCR negative during each of the follow-ups (p=0.134) and both groups demonstrated comparable efficacy. The clinical recovery rate in terms of time taken for complete cure of symptoms in the symptomatic participants was 60% and 37% on day 15 (p=0.098) and 100% and 85.2% on day 30 (p=0.112), in the intervention and control group respectively which is numerically a better clinical outcome in the intervention group. The improvement in the inflammatory markers such as IL-6, TNF-α and D-dimer was statistically significant in the intervention group (p<0.05). None of the participants developed any complications nor were any significant ADR/AE observed in both the groups. Conclusion: In patients with asymptomatic and mild COVID-19, AYUSH-64 as add-on to standard conventional care, contributed to improving the duration for attaining complete clinical cure and demonstrated potential in reducing the levels of pro-inflammatory markers in the body