Medico - historical study of "Visŭcikă" (Cholera).

ABSTRACT

The Sanskrit word Visŭcikă refers to a condition in which vitiated văta dŏşa causes pain like pricking with a needle over the body. It occurs in a person suffering with ajĭrna (indigestion) and its detailed description is available in Ayurvedic literature. This disease has its existence in India since ancient times; it has also been referred in Mahăhărata and Tripitikas. Its etiology, signs, symptoms, complications, prognosis and treatment etc. as described in Ayurveda may be correlated with the disease Cholera, which is commonly known as "Haiza" in Hindi. In Greek language, the word Cholera means a flow of bile or the bilious disease. Cholera is an acute infectious diarrheal disease, caused by comma bacillus or vibrio cholerae sero groups 01 or 0139. Aretaetus, Benjamin Rush, Chadwick, John Snow, Robert Koch, etc. were some of the pioneers in Cholera research. Medico- historical importance of Cholera, its transmission, description and references from Ayurvedic texts etc., are being presented in this article.