Abstract

Dr. Niveditha M. N.*, Dr. Vasantha B., Dr. Muttappa Totad, Dr. Rakesh M., Dr. Adarsh Kallimath, Dr. Chaithra M.

ABSTRACT

IBS consists of a group of GI symptoms particularly associated with lower bowel in absence of demonstrable organic pathology. The word Grahani in ayurveda relates to Agni (digestive fire) which helps metabolism and digestion of food. Ayurvedic literature describe the ingestion, digestion, absorption and assimilation of Aahaar by Grahani. Normally it retains the undigested matter and releases the digested food. Any disturbance in Agni leads to an improper digestion of food. Grahani is main functional part of Mahastrotas, also known as a pittadhara kala. It is one of these diseases and its importance is emphasized by being included in ashtamahagadas. It has significant medical importance in modern times due to its direct link to improper food habits & stressful lifestyles of present era. Ayurveda defines the disease as characterised by passage of hard or loose stool containing undigested or digested food particles. It is a functional gastrointestinal disorder characterized by a group of symptoms accompanied together that include abdominal pain and changes in the consistency of bowel movement. The cardinal features of Grahani explained in the classical text books of Ayurveda, have at most similarities with the clinical features of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). So, we can correlate the Grahani roga with IBS. A diagnosed case of Grahani is discussed here. This is a case study of 28year old male patient with complaints of loss of appetite, Altered and increased frequency of bowel, he was administered Panchakarma treatments for 10 days and 2 follow up was done. Intervention period of 42 days showed complete resolution of complaints. The improvement was assessed using subjective and objective criteria. The present case shows that ayurvedic measures are helpful in treating patients of Grahani.