Unani concept of diabetes: a review.

Abstract

Non-healing diabetic wound is the most dreadful complication among diabetic patients which causes amputation and thus leads to permanent disabilities. Most of the diabetic wound might end in amputation. The word “diabetes” is derived from Greek language 'Diabetus', which means 'to run through' or “Siphon”. This is characterized by hyperglycemia, glycosurea, increase appetite, excessive thirst and gradual loss of body weight. In Arabic, Diabetes is called “Diabeta”, “Dolab”, and “Salasulbol” etc. The literature review was done through the available resources such as authentic ancient literatures, journals and literature source of website focusing on Unani concept of diabetes. The pathogenesis of “Diabetus Shakri”, its signs and symptoms, complications have been explained with the details of treatment in a number of classical texts of Unani medicine. Although “Buqrat” (The Father of Medicine - 460 BC) did not specically mention diabetes in his “writings” , he has explained similar conditions having the same signs and symptoms of diabetes such as excessive urinary ow with the wasting of the body. Arsyatoos was the rst who introduced the term “Diabetus” to a condition related to an ailment and described it as a dreadful afiction as it melted down the esh and limbs into urine but stated not frequently found among men. Ibne Sina in his book Al-Qanoon described the clinical features of the disease precisely and documented the taste of diabetic urine as sweet, and the complications of the disease as gangrene, loss of sexual function and abnormal appetite. The clinical features of 'Diabetus Shakri' caused by abnormal temperament of the kidney and the liver are found to be consistent with that of Diabetes Mellitus in the present day. Thus 'Diabetus Shakri' described in the Unani classical texts can be correlated with the condition Diabetes Mellitus and effectively treated with Unani medicines.