It is an inherited degenerative eye disease that causes severe vision loss due to progressive degeneration of the rod cells in the retina .The symptoms of Retinitis pigmentosa manifest at any age from early infancy to late adulthood. The progressive rod degeneration is followed by cone degeneration. The patients of retinitis pigmentosa first experience night blindness and peripheral vision loss due to the decline of rod photoreceptors.
SYMPTOMS
The progression of the symptoms occur in a symmetrical manner with both right and left eye experiencing the symptoms at the same time.
- Night blindness
- Loss of peripheral vision
- Blurring of vision
- Slow adjustment from dark to light and vice versa
- Poor color vision
- Loss of central vision
- Eventual blindness
RETNITIS PIGMENTOSA IN AYURVEDA
As per existing available data, no effective approach for prevention, stabilization or reversal is there for Retinitis Pigmentosa cases apart from daily administration of Vitamin A.
In Susruta Samhitha, one of the oldest text books of Ayurveda has described seventysix eye diseases and their detailed treatment. Among these, diseases like Kaphavidagdha drushti, Hraswajadya and Dhoomadarshi which resemble Retinitis Pigmentosa in their symptomatology and different stages. There is a special mention of Ocular therapeutics, designed to improve the visual functionalities and treating the diseases of eye. Ayurveda rely its treatment efficacy on the basis of Tridosha ( three humors) and the drugs used in eye diseases are mainly congenial for eyes and which can maintain the tridosha proportion in the eyes which helps to tackle the condition of RP and reduce the symptoms to a greater extent and these occular therapeutics are based on Dosha afflicting and condition of the disease.Apart from these therapies, certain therapies to support the general body functions maybe required.
Though it is an incurable disease, with special techniques of ayurveda, Healing Earth assures a prolonged duration of stable vision by delaying the progression of the disease.