Perspectives of Medieval Persian Medicine on Multiple Sclerosis.

INTRODUCTION: Traditional Persian Medicine (TPM) was the prevailing practice of medicine in the Eurasia region up through the 18th century, a practice of medicine stemming back to Hippocrates and to the 5000 year old civilization of the region. It is a school of medicine which touches on many a delicate points which may seem unimaginable within the realm of modern allopathic medicine. This practice of ancient medicine besides shedding light on various possible theoretical modern day disorders serves as a vast resource for therapeutics. In this paper, we present study of the manuscripts of this ancient medical practice in search of symptom presentations coinciding with presentation of multiple sclerosis (MS). MATERIAL & METHOD: This paper represents a comprehensive search through TPM texts and manuscripts with the intention to seek possible clues on MS from potentially valuable age-old resources. We predominantly focused our search on the works of five eminent physicians of Medieval Persia: Avicenna (980-1037 AD), Haly Abbas (949-982 AD), Rhazes (865-925 AD), Averroes (1126-1198 AD) and Jorjani (1042-1137 AD). RESULTS: In this paper, the authors attempt a theory and conclude with high probability that a conjunction of a series of signs, symptoms found in TPM texts under the terms khadar, isterkha and falej form the symptoms and the disease pattern of modern day MS. This theory draws upon existent similarities in terms of disease pathology, disease patterns and predisposing factors seen between MS and the related morbidities within Persian Medicine. CONCLUSION: We recommend further examinations of such potentially valuable long-standing resources, examining the diagnoses and treatments as set forth by Persian Medicine through international collaboration within the global scientific community.

Oral magnesium administration prevents thermal hyperalgesia induced by diabetes in rats.

BACKGROUND: Peripheral neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus. It has been shown that hyperglycemia may contribute to its development but the exact pathophysiology underlying this complication is not fully understood. Since oral magnesium supplementation can normalize hyperglycemia induced by diabetes in rats, this study was designed to examine the effect of oral magnesium administration on thermal hyperalgesia in streptozocin-induced diabetic rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty-four male adult wistar rats were divided equally into control, magnesium-treated control, diabetic and magnesium-treated diabetic groups. In magnesium-treated diabetic rats, magnesium sulfate (10g/l) was added into the drinking water once diabetes was established (10 days after STZ injection) and continued for 8 weeks. Mg-treated control animals received magnesium sulfate in the same dose and over the same time period. The other two groups; control and diabetic animals, only received tap water. At the end of the 8 weeks, thermal pain threshold was assessed by tail flick test and magnesium and glucose plasma levels were measured in all groups. RESULT: A significant decrease (p<0.001) in thermal pain threshold and plasma magnesium levels and an increase in plasma glucose levels (p<0.001) were seen in diabetic rats 8 weeks after diabetes induction. After 8 weeks of oral magnesium, thermal hyperalgesia was normalized and plasma magnesium and glucose levels were restored towards normal. CONCLUSION: It is concluded that oral magnesium administration given at the time of diabetes induction may be able to restore thermal hyperalgesia, magnesium deficiency and hyperglycemia and in diabetic rats.