Huntington's Disease – Modern (Allopathic) Versus Ayurvedic Herbal Treatment

 Huntington’s disease (HD), also known as Huntington’s chorea, is a rare, degenerative neurological disease with a strong hereditary component. Children with one affected parent have a 50 percent chance of inheriting the disease. Symptoms are progressive in nature and include involuntary jerky movements, impaired muscular coordination, falls, slurred speech, difficulty in swallowing, mood changes, and dementia. Symptoms usually become apparent during middle age, and death may occur from between ten to thirty years. Rarely, children too may be affected with a juvenile form of the disease, which progresses much faster than the adult-onset disease.

 The basal ganglia and the brain cortex are the parts most affected by HD. The faulty HD gene produces abnormal triple nucleotide repeats, the sequence of which is repeated several times over. Patients with HD have 36 or more repeats (normal people have 26 or less); this causes formation of an unusually large Huntingtin protein, which is toxic and gradually causes degeneration of the brain. 

HD can currently be neither prevented nor cured; however, several medicines in the modern (Allopathic) system of medicine can help alleviate symptoms. Most of the medicines work by modulating neurotransmitters and include tetrabenazine and duetetrabenazine. Useful medicines also include antipsychotics like risperidone, olanzapine and haloperidol; antidepressants like citalopram, sertraline, fluoxetine and nortriptyline; and mood-stabilizers like lithium. In addition to medications, the long term management of people with HD includes graded physical exercise, proper nutrition, and planned care-giving.

 Ayurvedic treatment is especially useful in the treatment of Huntington's chorea, since Ayurvedic medicines are very useful in the treatment of nervous system disorders.  Ayurvedic medicines help to regenerate nerve cells, brain cells, and repair the damage to the nervous system.  Usually, degeneration of nerves involves damage to the outer covering of the nerves; this results in impaired functioning of the nerves, with a loss of nerve conduction and control of the limbs.  This results in severe impairment of the motor as well as sensory components of the nervous system. In this disease, there is a degeneration of the brain due to deposition of abnormal Hungtingtin protein. 

Ayurvedic treatment consists of oral medication as well as massage of the entire body with medicated oils, followed by fomentation; other procedures are also prescribed as required.  Panchkarma procedures help to reduce the number and dosage of oral medications, thereby reducing the chances of long term complications and bringing about increased compliance. Results are also faster and much more apparent; patients with moderate or advanced symptoms may see significant improvement with just 7-14 days of treatment! Once the symptoms are stabilized, further treatment can be planned as needed, while carefully monitoring the patient on a long term basis. This reduces the treatment free interval, thereby considerably reducing financial burden and emotional stress for patients as well as caregivers.

 Ayurvedic treatment can therefore improve or bring about a near cure in patients with Huntington's disease.  It is important to commence treatment at the earliest possible, in order to bring about maximum improvement.  Regular treatment is essential in order to obtain the required results.  To sum up, Ayurvedic treatment is very effective in the management of Huntington's disease or Huntington's chorea.

 The writer, Dr. A. A. Mundewadi, is available as an online Ayurvedic Consultant at https://www.mundewadiayurvedicclinic.com and http://www.ayurvedaphysician.com To start Ayurvedic herbal treatment for Huntington's disease, kindly click here

Congestive Cardiac Failure (CCF) – Modern (Allopathic) Versus Ayurvedic Herbal Treatment

 The heart acts as a mechanical pump to supply oxygenated blood along with nutrients to all parts of the body. Congestive cardiac failure (CCF) is a medical condition in which the heart loses its normal efficiency. If left untreated, this condition worsens over time and may lead to a complete failure of the heart, thereby causing death. CCF can be caused due to coronary artery disease (CAD), heart attack, cardiomyopathy, congenital heart defects, high blood pressure, valvular diseases of the heart, as well as general medical conditions like thyroid disease, and kidney disease.

Common symptoms of CCF include breathlessness on exertion or at rest, congested lungs, fluid and water retention (causing swelling of feet and – later on - bloating of the entire body), loss of appetite, nausea, dizziness, fatigue and weakness, and rapid or irregular heartbeat. Not all symptoms may be present in all affected individuals; and some may have no symptoms at all, at least in the initial phase of the disease.

Early diagnosis and management of this medical condition is important in order to prevent permanent and irreversible damage to the heart and increased mortality. The goal of the modern (Allopathic) system of medicines is to treat the known cause, ease symptoms, improve quality of life, prevent the condition from worsening, and reduce the need for hospitalization as well as the risk of death.

Some of the medicines commonly used include ACE inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor blockers, beta blockers, blood vessel dilators, digoxin, calcium channel blockers, diuretics, potassium, magnesium, and heart pump medications. Regular graded exercises, lifestyle modifications and regular, lifelong medical follow ups are important to maintain a good quality of life and achieve good heart control with medications. Lifestyle modifications include quitting smoking and alcohol consumption, changing diet, and reducing weight.

For patients with specific causes and advanced or severe disease, surgical treatment options may be offered. These include coronary artery bypass graft (CABG), heart valve surgery, implantable left ventricular assist device (LVAD), and heart transplant. Heart failure management is thus a team effort and includes the services of cardiology physicians and surgeons, nurses, dietitians, physiotherapists, social workers and counselors.

In addition to modern conservative care, institution of aggressive Ayurvedic treatment to treat both the cause and effects of CCF can result in highly gratifying results. Ayurvedic medicines are very effective in quickly controlling high blood pressure; this reduces the work load on the heart thereby reducing heart muscle fatigue and compromised pumping action. Herbal medicines work very well to reduce atherosclerosis and obstruction in narrowed coronary vessels so as to improve the blood flow to the heart muscles. Damage to heart muscles due to valvular insufficiency, heart muscle disease, or alcohol and drug abuse can be corrected using specific herbal therapy for the same. Work efficiency of the heart can be improved using appropriate herbo-mineral therapy.

With regular treatment, affected individuals notice a definite improvement in symptoms like swelling, breathlessness, fatigue and reduced appetite. Objective tests like chest x-ray and 2-d echo test reveal improvement in such parameters as reduction in the size of enlarged heart chambers, improved valvular efficiency, improved heart ejection fraction, reduced load on the lungs, and resolution of swelling in and around the pericardium.

Ayurvedic herbal treatment can thus be judiciously used to treat refractory patients having CCF. Concurrent Ayurvedic treatment can dramatically improve the overall outlook of long term treatment of CCF and significantly bring down mortality resulting from this condition.

The writer, Dr A A Mundewadi, is available as an online Ayurvedic Consultant at https://www.mundewadiayurvedicclinic.com and http://www.ayurvedaphysician.com To start Ayurvedic herbal treatment for CCF, kindly click here