Gangrene – Symptoms and Ayurvedic Treatment

Gangrene is a serious and possibly fatal condition, it needs immediate and proper treatment. There are six types of gangrene. If you take improper treatment or leave untreated, the only option is to remove the limb if the situation becomes more serious. But Ayurveda provides various herbs which are effective in the management of gangrene. In India, there are less than 1 million cases per year.

Gangrene is the condition that occurs due to the death of body tissues. It is induced by the lack of blood supply due to injury, illness and the presence of severe bacterial infection. It mainly occurs by a bacterial infection produced by bacterium clostridium perfringens. It affects the fingers, limbs, toes, and also occur in muscles and internal organs.

Types of Gangrene

1. Dry Gangrene

 It develops slowly and predominantly in the patient suffering from diabetes or arterial blood vessel disease such as atherosclerosis. It is characterized by dry and wrinkled skin, which is brown to purple-blue or black.

2. Wet Gangrene

It develops when a bacterial infection in the injured tissue becomes the cause of gangrene. The common symptoms of wet gangrene are blistering, swelling, and wet conditions.

3. Gas Gangrene

The common cause of gas gangrene is infection due to bacterium Clostridium perfringens, which occurs in the wound or surgical cut that interferes with the blood supply. It affects deep muscle tissue.

4. Internal Gangrene

This type of gangrene which affects the internal organ of the body may be one or more than one such as gallbladder, intestines, or appendix, etc. It may create severe pain and fever. It can be fatal if left untreated.

5. Fournier’s Gangrene

Fournier’s gangrene affects genital organs. Usually, men are more prone to develop gangrene but Fournier’s gangrene affects women more.

6. Meleney’s Gangrene

This is a rare type of gangrene. It may occur after one or two weeks of surgery.

Risk Factors

There are several factors that increase the risk of generating gangrene which includes the following:

1. Diabetes
2. Severe injury
3. Surgery
4. Obesity
5. Immunosuppressive disease (HIV infection)
6. Smoking

Symptoms of Gangrene

The gangrene affects the skin and internal organs of the body, so it appears with different symptoms according to the site that affected.

• Affects Skin

1. Skin discoloration like yellow to black, blue, purple, bronze, and red.
2. A clear edge between normal and damaged skin
3. Severe and sudden pain.
4. Numbness
5. Foul-smelling secretion from the wound.
6. Shiny thin skin or skin without hair

• Affects tissues underneath the skin

1. Like in gas gangrene or internal gangrene.
2. Pain and swelling in affected tissues.
3. Low-grade fever.

• When the bacterial infection causes gangrenes in affected tissues and spreads throughout the body

1. Hypotension
2. Fever (temperature falls from the normal i.e. 96.8 F)
3. Fast heart rate
4. Lightheadedness
5. Breathlessness
6. Confusion or uncertainty
7. Dizziness

Ayurvedic Aspect for Gangrene

In Ayurveda, there is no particular explanation of gangrene but according to Acharya Charaka (Kotha), gangrene means decayed and dead part, which is considered as complications of Vrana (1).

Herbal Remedies for Gangrene

Ayurveda is a holistic approach that helps to make a balance in the body, mind, and soul with the use of herbs and proper diet habits. Therefore Ayurveda is the new hope in this era as Ayurveda concentrates on the root of the disease and controls the symptoms without producing any adverse effects on the body. Although herbs take time to show their effect they have positive results on the body.

Some Herbs for Gangrene

1. Neem
2. Curcumin
3. Gotukola
4. Amla

1. Neem: It possesses immunomodulatory, anti-hyperglycaemic, anti-inflammatory, antimalarial, antiulcer, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antioxidant, and anticarcinogenic properties (2).

2. Curcumin: It possesses anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties (3).

3. Gotukola: It possesses anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, hepatoprotective and antidiabetic properties (4).

4. Amla: It possesses various properties anti-atherogenic, anti-inflammatory,  antioxidant, hypotensive, anti-mutagenic, and anti-carcinogenic, etc (5).

Herbal Products for Gangrene by Planet Ayurveda

Planet Ayurveda provides useful herbal medicines such as Neem Capsules, Curcumin Capsules, Gandhak Rasayan, Gotukola Capsules, and Navkarshik Churna to treat gangrene naturally. These herbal medicines are made by using the herbs of the best quality. These are 100 % natural, pure, and safe as these do not cause side effects.

1. Curcumin Capsules
2. Neem Capsules
3. Navkarshik Churna
4. Gandhak Rasayan
5. Gotukola Capsules

Product Description

1. Curcumin Capsules

Curcumin capsules are formulated by using a pure extract of Haridra (Curcuma longa). It contains anti-inflammatory and analgesic properties which help to reduce sore and wounds associated with Gangrene. It also possesses antimicrobial properties which make the body fight against the infections. It improves immunity and also forms new skin cells.

Dosage – Two capsules two times a day with plain water.