ABSTRACT
The significance of Nadi Pariksha is well understood and effectively used by Ayurveda practioners forassessing Tridoshas and various physiological and psychological states of the patient. The traditional textsSarangadhara Samhita, Yoga Ratnakara, Basavarajeeyam and Bhavaprakasha have discussed the details ofNadi Pariksha in succinct set of slokas. Ayurveda has thousands of years of rich experience in Nadi Pariksha with strong literature support but is subjective in nature and the need for studying nadi with ascientific approach is well understood. Recently, pulse wave velocity has gained significant researchinterest as it is considered to be a strong indicator of cardiovascular disease; however, the relevance ofpulse wave analysis to Nadi Pariksha has not been studied. In this review, traditional methods of NadiPariksha as defined in Ayurveda classics and the recent advances in pulse wave analysis are discussed. Asper classical texts, qualities or properties of pulse such as pulse movement (gati), speed of the pulse(vega), stability of the pulse (sthiratva) and hardness of the artery (kathinya) play major role in NadiPariksha and in the current review these properties were analyzed and compared with the modern pulseparameters namely pulse wave velocity, pulse rate variability and arterial stiffness. The significance ofpulse wave velocity in cardiovascular studies is discussed and the need for extending these studies toAyurveda is highlighted.© 2017 Transdisciplinary University, Bangalore and World Ayurveda Foundation. Publishing Services byElsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).