Abstract

ROLE OF SHIRODHARA IN ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE (DEMENTIA)- A CASE STUDY

Dr. Laxmi Gautam* and Dr. Shweta Mishra

ABSTRACT

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative disease that starts gradually and worsens over time. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems with language, orientation, mood swings, self-care, and behavioral issues. Gradually, bodily functions are lost ultimately leading to death. Although this condition is not described as a disease entity in Ayurveda the signs, symptoms, and pathogenesis of AD can be correlated to smrtinasa (memory loss). Symptoms of the disease indicate derangement in functions of vatadosa which is a natural manifestation in old age. This is the case report of a 60-yearold female diagnosed with AD. She underwent treatment for 28 days, followed by one follow-up at 15 days. The treatment was a combination of appropriate panchakarma procedures (Shirodhara) and selected Medhyarasayan drugs. The patient’s condition was assessed before and after treatment using the standardized mini-mental state examination (smmse) index score from 0 to 30. in which improvement and retardation of progression of symptoms without any adverse effect were noticed.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease, Neurodegenerative diseases, Smrtinasa, Shirodhara, standardized mini-mental state examination (smmse), Medhyarasayan drugs.