Even as the Covid-19 pandemic is taking a heavy toll on the world, the Ministry of Ayush along with Council of Scientific and Industrial Research will conduct clinical trials of four Ayurvedic formulations on patients. The trials will take place in a week. This was revealed
by Ayush Minister Shripad Y Naik in a tweet. “These formulations will be tried as an add-on therapy and standard care for COVID-19 patients,” stated Naik.
Although the minister has not divulged the details or names of the drugs, it is believed that one of the formulations for the trial is an immunity-boosting Ayurvedic drug Fifatrol. The proposal for the trial of the drug was mooted by the professors of Banaras Hindu University.
The @moayush & the @CSIR_IND are working together on validating four Ayush formulations against #COVID19Pandemic and the trials will start within one week. These formulations will be tried as an add-on therapy and standard care for COVID-19 patients.
— Shripad Y. Naik (मोदी का परिवार) (@shripadynaik) May 14, 2020
Fifatrol, enriched with immune-enhancing herbs, has been found to be effective in curing major bacterial infections such as staphylococcus species that causes fever, cough and cold, and skin diseases among others, according to professors.
The manufacture of Fifatrol, AIMIL Pharmaceuticals, said the drug is used to treat flu and viral infections of upper respiratory tract. But this is for the first time that experts have decided to determine if it can be helpful in combating the novel coronavirus.
Dr Dwivedi, Head of the Department of Dravyaguna at BHU, said that Fifatrol is given to patients with symptoms similar to Covid-19. “So, we are now trying to evaluate this drug on critically-ill COVID-19 patients to check if it can help reduce mortality,” he said.
According to him, the medicine was given to dengue patients at AIIMS,
Bhopal. “The drug was found to have increased platelet count significantly. The study also established that Fifatrol can strengthen the liver with no systemic side effects,” the professor said.
“Fifatrol is an anti-microbial solution prepared from 13 key herbs including sudarshan vati, sanjeevani vati, godanti bhasma, tribhuvan kirti ras and mrityunjay ras, tulsi, kutki, chirayata, motha and giloy,” Dr Dwivedi said.
The Interdisciplinary AYUSH Research and Development Task Force has
members from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) as also ayush practitioners and others. Their job is to identify potential preventive therapy and therapeutic approaches from ayush systems in different stages of
COVID-19 treatment.
The AYUSH ministry had issued a notification on March 31, asking ayurveda, yoga and naturopathy, unani, siddha and homoeopathy (AYUSH) practitioners and institutions to submit their suggestions on various therapies, and has received over 2,000 proposals.
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