Review on dashavidha pariksha - a unique contribution of charaka samhita in the field of clinical examination

Summary of article contents:

Introduction: Atura Pariksha i.e. clinical examination of patients is one of the most vital aspects of diagnosis of diseases as well as assessing their morbidity along with chalking out the line of treatment. Several scholars have propounded several methods of clinical examination among them Trividha Pariksha (threefold examination), Sadavidha Pariksha (sixfold examination), and Ashtasthana Pariksha (eightfold examination) are some of the important methods of clinical examination. Apart from all these examinations, Acharya Charaka has introduced a unique method of clinical examination namely Dashavidha Pariksha (ten folds examination) in his compendium Charaka Samhita, Vimanasthana , 8 th chapter. What makes this method unique is the fact that this method can be applied to both healthy and diseased individuals to assess their state of health. Dashavidha Pariksha can be applied thoroughly for the assessment of Aturavala Pramana (strength of the diseased individual), Aturadosha Pramana (degree of the status of the morbidity of Dosha), Atura Ayu Pramana (life span of the individual), assessment of morbidity of diseases and establishing a line of treatment. Discussions: Under Dashavidha Pariksha, Prakriti Pariksha is done on the basis of clinical features attributed by each Gunas of the three Doshas . Depending on the presenting features a person’s Prakriti is determined as Eka Doshaja Prakriti (contributed by only one Dosha ) or Dwandaja Prakriti (contributed by two Dosha s) or Tridoshaja Prakriti (contributed by all three Dosha s). Vikriti is assessed on the basis of Hetu, Dosha, Dushya, Prakriti , etc. Sara Pariksha refers to an assessment of the excellence of each Dhatus based on presenting clinical features. Samhanana Pariksha refers to an assessment of the compactness of organs. Pramana Pariksha refers to an assessment of the measurement of different anatomical organs of an individual. Satmya refers to dietetic homologation to any particular or multiple Rasas . Sattva Pariksha refers to an assessment of psychic condition on the basis of presenting features. Ahara Shakti and Vyayama Shakti Pariksha deal with the assessment of digestive power along with the power of performing physical exercise. Vaya Pariksha refers to an assessment of individuals in relation to a particular age group. Conclusions: Generally, all other clinical examinations are primarily done to diagnose a particular disease but the role of Dashavidha Pariksha in the diagnosis is very negligible rather its role is very vital in the prediction of the prognosis of the disease in the diseased individual, and planning an appropriate line of treatment. This method of clinical examination can also be applied to assess the various factors of healthy individuals like their Prakriti, Sara, Samhanana, Pramana, Ahara Shakti , etc. This assessment can help us to build a complete data base of healthy individuals which will help us to determine their degree of alteration during the diseased state of those individuals. Thus, this can pave the way for more accurate diagnosis as well as administration of medicaments. Keywords: Dadshavidha Pariksha, Atura Pariksha, Prakriti, Sara, Charaka Samhita INTRODUCTION In the Ayurvedic system of medicine, the clinical examination of a patient is the foremost important task to do for a successful diagnosis of a disease