Publication:

Efficacy of an ayurvedic therapeutic protocol in the management of gridhrasi/sciatica: a prospective open-label clinical study

Background Sciatica is a common neuromusculoskeletal disorder characterized by radiating pain along the sciatic nerve, often accompanied by functional disability and impairment of quality of life. Sciatica has been described in Ayurveda under a similar condition known as gridhrasi, which is classified as a severe vatavyadhi and mahagada. The widespread conventional analgesic use has suboptimal long-term results, and hence, there is a need to find complementary therapeutic interventions. This study was done to evaluate the clinical efficacy of an Ayurvedic treatment, namely vatanashini vati, kati basti with vishnu taila, and patra pinda sweda, in patients diagnosed with gridhrasi (sciatica).

Methods This open-label, prospective clinical study enlisted 30 patients diagnosed with gridhrasi (sciatica), recruited from the Government Ayurvedic hospital. Patients were administered oral medication vatanashini vati and external therapies for two months. Outcome measures included subjective symptoms like pain, pricking sensation, stiffness, tingling, and functional parameters, such as the Straight Leg Raising test and gait. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used for statistical analysis.

Results All the assessed parameters showed a statistically significant posttreatment improvement, p<0.001. Pain intensity, stiffness, and paresthesia were considerably reduced, and functional mobility improved in the majority of treated patients. No serious adverse events were reported.

Conclusions The studied Ayurvedic protocol has shown promising symptomatic and functional improvement in patients with gridhrasi (sciatica). These results indicate a role of Ayurveda-based interventions as possibly safe and effective complementary intervention strategies in sciatica management. Larger trials are needed.