Multimodal ayurvedic approach in the management of moderate SARS-COV2 infection with co-morbidities - A case report.

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic which has claimed more than 1.4 million lives as of today. This unprecedented period demands greatly for the traditional and native medical systems which are time-tested and holistic. Some of the recent studies have reported severe infection in individuals with comorbidities such as obesity, diabetes mellitus, old age, etc. Ayurveda understands this condition as <i>Agantuja Jwara</i> of <i>Sannipatika</i> origin. <i>Madhumeha</i> (diabetes mellitus) is basically a disease of depleted <i>Ojus</i> (immunity) as per Ayurveda. Here, we report a case of COVID-19 in an elderly overweight patient with diabetes, which was managed successfully with Ayurvedic medicines, diet, lifestyle, yoga, and rejuvenative therapy. A 70-year-old male consulted our physician through phone call and willfully wanted to take Ayurvedic management for COVID-19. On the 1^st day of treatment, the patient complained of fever at 103 F, headache, and severe body ache. Later on, started with a cough, headache, shortness of breath, excessive thirst, etc. Based on the symptom cluster and food-exercise routine, <i>Kapha</i> and <i>Pitta</i> were the vitiated body humors. After thorough Ayurvedic assessment, the patient was administered with <i>Langhana, Pachana</i> (procedures to improve digestive metabolism), anti-pyretic, and antidiabetic medications followed by yoga and pranayama. The patient was also advised rejuvenative therapy to prevent further post-COVID complications. Quality of Life was assessed with Quality of Life Instrument for Indian Diabetes Patients (QOLID) and EuroQol five-dimensional (EQ-5D). The patient was completely relieved from major symptoms in 4 days and tested negative after 12 days, with considerable improvement in QOL. The case was followed up for 60 days, and no post-COVID symptoms were reported.