A COMPARATIVE STUDY ON PRATHAMA AND DWITEEYA SINDHOORADHYA MALAHARA WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO ITS ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY

Abstract

Rasatarangini, one of the esteemed treatises of Ayurvediya Rasasastra has mentioned numerous malahara (ointment) preparations with herbal and herbo-mineral origin. The term malahara itself mean those which remove mala (impurities) from vrana (ulcers), vidradhi (abscesses), twak vikara (skin diseases) etc. Acharya Sadananda Sharma, author of Rasatarangini has mentioned Sindhooradhya malahara a preparation with potent action on vranashodhana ropana (wound cleansing and healing) and bhootasanga prashamana (antimicrobial) properties. Acharya has mentioned two malahara preparations named as Prathama and Dwiteeya Sindhooradhya malahara with only difference in single drug. Both preparations are indicated in skin manifestations like pama and kandu, which may be due to invasion of some external organisms or microbes. WHO has declared that antimicrobial resistance is one of the top 10 global public health threat facing humanity and thus the search for ayurvedic antimicrobials are progressing day by day. Since it is a topical antibiotic preparation, with very minimal ingredients proving its efficacy will be of great use for the society. The present study aims at the preparation and comparison between the antimicrobial activity of the two Sindhooradhya malahara named as Prathama and Dwiteeya respectively. The main findings are, antimicrobial study by both agar well diffusion and macro broth dilution showed that more action in Prathama Sindhooradhya malahara. Among the 4 tested strains, significant results are seen in case ofStreptococcus pyogenes and Candida albicans whereas Dwiteeya Sindhooradhya malahara had no action in the tested strains of microbes.