Mumbai-Based Ayurvedic Surgeon Receives Patent For Innovation In Fistula Treatment

It took nearly a year to develop the 'Ksharsutra carrier cum application device' for Ksharsutra therapy. Read on to know all about fistula and this this new device.

An Ayurvedic surgeon based in Mumbai has received a patent from the Intellectual Property of India (IPI) for his innovation that will be useful in the treatment for anal fistula. For the unserved, an anal fistula is an infected tunnel that develops between the end of the bowel and the skin near the anus.

Dr Amar Dwivedi, head of the surgery department at School of Ayurveda, DY Patil University, Navi Mumbai, received the patent for 'Ksharsutra carrier cum application device' for Ksharsutra therapy. It is a popular ayurvedic parasurgical treatment used in the management of Anorectal disorders such as hemorrhoids, fistula-in-ano, anal fissure, and pilonidal sinus.

All about this device

Dr Dwivedi has developed a device that works both as a ksharsutra carrier (storage) and applicator (drug delivery) in the fistulous tract. It is a sterile, flexible, disposable tube made of high-density polyethylene material. It took nearly a year to develop the device, Dr Dwivedi told media persons.

According to Dr Dwivedi, Ksharsutra involves using a medicated thread coated with herbal alkaline drugs which possess both cutting and healing properties like Seton. This treatment modality is being effectively practised by Ayurveda surgeons to treat various anorectal conditions such as fistula and pilonidal sinuses. However, it is not yet accepted by modern surgeons owing to the lack of standardisation and fear of complications.

The device was developed with an aim to overcome all the present limitations of the therapy like its sterilisation, and to make the procedure user-friendly, he added.

In 2012, Dwivedi applied for the patent for his innovation to the IPI.

Symptoms of anal fistula

Often, anal fistulas occur due to an infection near the anus that causes a collection of pus (abscess) in the nearby tissue. A small channel is left behind after the pus has drained away. Symptoms associated with anal fistulas include:

• skin irritation around the anus
• a constant, throbbing pain when you sit down, move around, poo or cough
• passing pus or blood when you poo
• swelling and redness around your anus
• fever if you have an abscess
• bowel incontinence in some cases
• Sometimes the end of the fistula might become visible as a hole in the skin near your anus.

In most cases, surgery is recommended. Consult a GP if you have the above symptoms.