Indian Medicine (Medicin), translated by C. G. Kashikar c13.24

c13.24

a swelling consequent to pus formation in later pathology (MN, Vang, Bhav ), cf. § 78. There are six varieties of sopha or vraṇasotha, which depend upon the doṣas, blood or external causes, and are distinguished by their colour, consistence, painfulness and kind of development. There are further three stages of an inflammation of which the unripe (āma) is recognised by little heat and painfulness, coldness, hardness and little elevation of the tumour and unchanged colour of skin. In the ripening (pacyamāna) inflammation there is violent pain like that by pricking of a needle, ant or scorpion, pricking by knife, stroke of a club, burning or cauterizing and the like, the patient finds no rest in standing, sitting or lying, the tumour gets more elevated like a blown leather bag, the skin becomes pale, there is fever, heat, thirst and loss of appetite. In the ripe (pakva) condition the pain relaxes, the skin is whitish, there is diminished swelling, wrinkles appear on the skin, the skin springs up, the tumour can be pressed in by fingers, but again gets elevated, the above-mentioned phenomena cease and the appetite returns. One should first press the inflammation by fingers, then extract blood by means of leeches and the like, then should apply plaster to it, fourthly cut it up, fifthly apply purifying substances, sixthly healing substances, lastly remove the disfigurements (Su 1.17 = Vr 44 ). Before the operation the patient should have eaten something, so that he may not faint, and if he is accustomed to drink or cannot tolerate the pain, he should be given a strong drink, so that he may not feel the knife in the intoxication (Su 1.17; AHr 1.29 ). The avoidance of an operation in a ripe abscess leads to the result that the pus seeks a way out forcibly and forms a fistula, cf. § 77. On the other hand, the opening of an unripe abscess causes severe loss of blood, disturbance of flesh, arteries, sinews etc. and other bad complications (Su 1.17; AS 1.38; AHr 1.29; MN 265-7; Vr 44; Bhav 2.3; Vang 606 ff. ).