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READERS VIEWPOINT/LETTER |
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Year : 2016 | Volume
: 35
| Issue : 3 | Page : 184 |
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Successful treatment of Guillain–Barre syndrome by Ayurvedic treatment
Khichar Purnaram Shubhakaran
Department of Neurology, Dr. S. N. Medical College, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India
Date of Web Publication | 8-Apr-2016 |
Correspondence Address: Khichar Purnaram Shubhakaran House No. E-22/9, Umaid Hospital Campus, Jodhpur - 342 001, Rajasthan India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/0257-7941.179866
How to cite this article: Shubhakaran KP. Successful treatment of Guillain–Barre syndrome by Ayurvedic treatment. Ancient Sci Life 2016;35:184 |
Sir,
I read an interesting case report on Ayurvedic approach for treatment of Guillain–Barre syndrome (GBS) by Nakanekar et al.[1] Here I would like to share my views and experience:
- The observations made by the authors may need to be tested further preferably in double blinded trials
- The treatment given in the Government Medical College, Nagpur was not the standard treatment for GBS, and hence it cannot be concluded that the patient didn't respond to treatment at the college
- While excluding myelitis, the lumbo-sacral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is of no use except for conus. Whereas a dorsal and cervical spine MRI may have been more informative for myelitis
- The treatment given by the Ayurvedic approach may be rewarding but it needs to be tested further. At times in natural course, the patient may recover in a span of 2-3 months which was also observed in this. So there is a strong possibility that this patient may have recovered naturally with the supportive treatment definitely playing a positive role in recovery
- As reported, the fever didn't subside for a long time. Hence it may well be that the effective treatment of fever at the Ayurvedic center might have resulted in complete recovery. This happens many a time in patients suffering from malaria and Brucellosis who recover with specific treatment of malaria and brucella respectively [2],[3],[4]
- All the modalities of treatment in allopathic medicine are not costly except for intravenous immunoglobulins.[5] The intensive care cost which amounts a lot to the patient will be the same in any discipline, be it allopathic or Ayurvedic. Of course the cost effective treatment in Ayurveda will be a milestone achievement if it proves to be so in further studies.
The aim of this correspondence is to make an interaction between an Ayurvedic treatment team and allopathic one so as to make the information of the article more relevant.
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
References | |  |
1. | Nakanekar A, Bhople S, Gulhane H, Rathod S, Gulhane J, Bonde P. An ayurvedic approach in the management of Guillain-Barre syndrome: A case study. Anc Sci Life 2015;35:52-7. |
2. | Shubhakaran, Choudhary R. Polyneuropathy with autonomic involvement in Plasmodium falciparum malaria. J Vector Borne Dis 2012;49:268-9. |
3. | Shubhakaran, Sharma CM. Acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy with P. falciparum malaria. J Assoc Physicians India 2003;51:223-4. |
4. | Shubhakaran. Infectious causes of peripheral autonomic neuropathy. J Assoc Physicians India 2007;55:153. |
5. | van Doorn PA, Kuitwaard K, Walgaard C, van Koningsveld R, Ruts L, Jacobs BC. IVIG treatment and prognosis in Guillain-Barré syndrome. J Clin Immunol 2010;30 Suppl 1:S74-8. |
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