Management of Pre-menstrual syndrome with Combined Ayurveda Interventions (Ashwagandha Vati and Satvavajaya Chikitsa)-An Open label Single Arm Clinical Study

Abstract

Background: Pre Menstrual Syndrome is a common disorder in females ofreproductive age group, associated with physical and psychological disturbances. The cluster of symptoms represents the dominance of vata and kapha vitiation. The objective of the study is to evaluate the combined effect of i) Ashwagandha vati-(formulation prepared from Withania somniferaaiming at mitigation of vata & kapha) ii) Satvavajaya chikitsa-(structured ayurvedic psychotherapy aiming at restructuring the mind) in the management of Pre Menstrual Syndrome. Materials and Methods: The present study adopted an open label single arm clinical pilot study conducted at a tertiary Ayurveda hospital in a south Indian city with 30 female subjects (who fulfilled the inclusion and diagnostic criteria). They were selected by convenience sampling method. Two Ashwagandha vati (500 mg) twice a day were administered orally every day with milk and four sessions of Satvavajaya chikitsa over a period of one month (1 menstrual cycle) were performed. A predefined standard questionnaire was used to measure the efficacy of this approach before, after treatment, and at followup. Statistical analysis of subjective parameters were assessed by Friedman's test and Wilcoxon signed rank test. Result: In the study participants, psychological symptoms were more prevalent than physical. There was a significant improvement (P0.001) in cognitive, affective/psychological and behavioural symptoms after 30 days of the combined treatment. Conclusion: The combined therapeutic intervention of herbal preparation (Ashwagandha vati) with Satvavajaya Chikitsa is found helpful in reducing Pre Menstrual Syndrome. Further investigation using more rigorous methods is desired to confirm the observations.