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Journalism of Courage
A new ayurvedic drug formulated by Indian scientists to treat osteoarthritis has posed a challenge to allopathic drugs like celecoxib and glucosamine in efficacy and even proved to be more safe.
The project, which commenced in 2002, looked at ayurvedic remedies for degenerative disorders like osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis as part of the New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) launched by the then PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee and coordinated by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
With human trials showing encouraging results, the excitement at the CSIR is palpable. “The pharma industry has evinced interest in the new formulation which has tremendous potential to treat osteoarthritis,” said Dr D Yogeshwar Rao, head of the Technology Networking and Business Division of CSIR.
“We came together to find out if it was possible to validate ayurvedic medicines for global use,” said Dr Arvind Chopra, principal investigator and director of the Centre for Rheumatic Diseases in Pune. NMITLI then brought together scientists from across the country.
After studies on animals, a seven-arm study was conducted in 2005 where the ayurvedic formulation C and B prepared from three of these plants showed reduction in knee pain in osteoarthritis patients resulting in reduced dependence on painkillers.
The final drug trial tried to compare the ayurvedic formulation with popular osteoarthritis drugs like glucosamine and celecoxib. During the six-month study, involving 440 patients, no painkillers were used and the ayurvedic drug dose was gradually built up. “The first ayurvedic has proved to be safe and also reduced the progression of the disease,” said Chopra. The project is now near completion.
The ingredients
•Withania somnifera (ashvagandha)
• Phyllanthus emblica (amla)
•Zingiber officinale (ginger)
•Tribuluterr estris (gokhur)
• Boswelia serrata (guggul)
• Tinospora cordifolia (guduchi)
