A Review on Lepa Kalpana in Dadru W.R.T. to Brihatrayi and Laghutrayi

Skin is the outermost covering of body and the largest organ of the integumentary system. Skin diseases are major health problem with emotional and psychological burden on patients. In Ayurvedic classics, almost all the skin diseases come under the broad heading of Kushtha. Dadru is a type of Kushtha which can be correlated with Tinea infection (fungal infection) in modern science. Three genera of dermatophytes infect skin i.e. Trichophyton spp, Epidermophyton spp and Microsporum spp. Ayurveda describes a multitude of treatment modalities for skin diseases in relation with various types of kushtha. One of them is the topical use of medicaments over the skin for topical absorption which allows faster absorption and better management of skin diseases. Lepa kalpana is a herbal or herbo-mineral drug for topical use. Although lepa is an important therapy in various diseases but it is highly useful specifically in dermatological diseases. This review describes different lepas which are especially mentioned for Dadru in doctrines of Ayurveda. Key words: Dadru, Kushtha, Lepa kalpana , Skin diseases.