Effectiveness of Siddha Therapy on Remission of Crohn's Disease and Its Impact on the Lifestyle of an Individual: A Case Report
Crohn's disease, a type of chronic Inflammatory Bowel Disease, is characterized by inflammation and Ulceration in Terminal Ileum and colon, although it can affect any part of the Intestinal canal. The clinical manifestations of CD include diarrhoea or constipation, abdominal pain/swelling, ulcers and some may have joint arthritis, or skin allergies, fatigue and weakness. A patient suffering from CD has a disruptive lifestyle with psychological depressions affecting their work performance and Quality of life.
This case study describes a 11-year-old female, a known diagnosed case of Crohn's disease, who had all symptoms of CD with phases of relapses and failed to enter clinical remission despite standard medical therapy for 2 long years. Patient was experiencing periods of moderate abdominal cramps with vomiting and pain along with frequent diarrhoea and later on constipation, loss of appetite and weight loss of almost 10kgs. Patient also reported occasional joint pains and delayed growth milestones (in terms of height and weight). The Harvey-Bradshaw Index showed value 7 which shows mildly moderate condition of disease so depending upon severity, the patient was treated with Siddha Thodu Varmam methods and Thokkanam Therapy along with dietary modifications for a month in two stages. After the sessions, a vast improvement was observed in symptoms, activities, pain intensity and Quality of life (QoL) of the patient measured by Harvey-Bradshaw Index (HBI) score, The patient’s bowel intensity reduced, her stomach pain came down, she could attend her college and her weight increased by 4 kgs. She looked more energetic and felt more relaxed after the sessions. The colonoscopy results after 3 months showed the reduction in inflammation and results corresponded to the symptom improvement. It is clear from the above case that Siddha therapy can be used as an adjunctive therapy as part of a multidisciplinary integrative approach in reducing the pain and improving the flexibility and quality of life in CD.