A literary review on Pranashta Shalya with special reference to foreign body

Among eight branches of Ayurveda (ashtang ayurveda), prime importance has been given to Shalyatantra i.e., surgical branch which exclusively deals with shalya nirharan means removal/extraction/treatment/management of anything disturbing physical and mental status of the body. Pranashta Shalya is a Sanskrit word meant for foreign particles embedded in human body which is not seen externally but body gives some specific signals of its identification or few special activities are need to discover a foreign particle in human body. In modern surgery it’s still a challenge for detection and excavation of retained foreign body. Due to lack of modern diagnostic tools in ancient period removal of retained foreign body could have been more challenging. Acharya Sushruta has described accurate and precise lakshana (symptoms and signs) along with chikitsa (treatment) of retained foreign body by the name of Pranashta Shalya in a separate chapter of Sutrasthana which helps surgeon of past and even today to overcome this difficulty.