Scientific writing in AyurvedaWhat is required ?

Dr. Remya Krishnan MD PhD

Scientific paper

• A “scientific experiment” is “ Basic science led experiment” in Ayurveda

• A scientific inquiry is not complete until the cause- mechanism- effect of the experiement has been totally explored and published.

• A scientific paper is a written and published report describing cause- mechnism- effect of the results

What is scientific writing in Ayurveda ?

• The purpose of scientific writing in Ayurveda is to communicate science based intentions

( shasthrarthas) and not mere observations .• Thus shasthrarthas are to be made clear, simple and

well ordered communication to transmit the result of the same.

• Scientific writing must use proper English (universal language) with necessary interpretation of scientific verses which gives the sense in the fewest short words

IMCAD format in Ayurveda

• I = Introduction and objective of the research• M = Methodologies of research adopted from shasthra• C= Cause- Mechanism- Effect (CME) of the

phenomena (science based rationale) explored. • A = Application mode of CME • D = Discussion of CME Instead of IMRAD format of Modern science, IMCAD

format is inevitable for establishing scientificity of Ayurveda.

What is a scientific paper in Ayurveda ?

• A scientific paper is a written and published exploration of shasthra describing CME of the context in totality.

• It must primarily incorporate the applied thinking of basic science of Ayurveda.

• It should be written in a format whereby peers of the author can repeat the experimentation of CME and verify the conclusions

• It should be available in a journal or other source document readily available within the scientific community

Original scientific publication • An accepted original scientific publication must

incorporate science led systamatic information to assess CME

• To repeat and analyse the experimentation of CME• To evaluate intellectual process of the researcher by

primarily employing the parameters of research explained in Ayurveda.

• Must have an impact on human being instead of “models” or animals .

• Available to scientific community without restriction

Some valid language points

• Poor comprehension of science based intentions cannot be masked by brilliant expression in english.

• Avoid complex sentence structure which cause confusions

• Use simple and clear English• Language skills in English (for communication)

and sanskrit ( for comprehention of science based intentions) are compulsory to acquire.

Before starting to write paper

• Explore CME of phenomenon in totality• Make summary of analysis of CME• Make a note what you learnt by applied research of Basic

science with respect to the context • Keep file to record summaries of results of clinical studies and

all individual observations separate.• Date the files• Revise your results of analysis in all your patients of identical

situations by applying CME analysis.• Record the science based intentions ( primary evidence base

in Evidence Based Medicine of Ayurveda) very methodically .

Essential parts of scientific paper in Ayurveda

• Title: Accurately project the objective of paper• Abstract: Summarize the major elements of the paper• Introduction: provide context and Basic science based rationale chosen for the

study• Materials: Describe the mode of Ayurvedic research methodology incorporated • Methods: Describe the experimental procedure guided by research standards of

basic science of Ayurveda• Results: Summarise the Cause- Mechanism- Effect explored .• Discussion: Interpret theCause- Mechanism- Effect explored based on standards of

basic science ofAyurevda• Summary: Summarise the effects of analysis in systematic and scientific manner• Acknowledgement: Give credit to those who helped you• References: List all scientific papers (if any), samhits and modern Medicine textbooks and websites.

The title

• A good title is defined as the fewest possible words that adequately project the objective of the paper

• The title is extremely important and must be chosen with great care as it will be read by thousands, whereas few will read the entire paper

• Indexing and abstracting of the paper depends on the accuracy of the title. An improperly titled paper will get lost and will never be read.

The title • Titles should neither be too short nor too long as to be

meaningless• Waste words (studies on, investigations on, a, an, the

etc) should not be used.• Syntax (word order) must be very carefully considered• It should contain the keywords that reflect the contents

of the paper.• It should be meaningful and sensible as per the

guidelines of Ayurveda.• It should be concise, specific and informative

Examples of wrong titles • Titles incorporating Action of compound X in disease Y or

treatment z in disease Y denote unscientific studies in Ayurveda because they do not abide by the fundamental objective of research in Ayurveda .

• The fundamental objective of Applied research in Ayurveda is proving and establishing science based intentions for attaining health of the patient and not proving benefits and risks of medicines to seek their approval .

• In Ayurveda, approvcal of any treatment or medicine inevitably requires approval of science led rationale responsible for their choice as primary step .

The right titles – examples

• The applied rationalised effects of Vataanulomana vis a vis Pittanulomana in Essential primary Hypertension .

• The Upasaya- Anupasaya of amavisha shamana in selected cases of Multiple sclerosis

• The pharmacology of Pachana in saama dosha

Abstract • An abstract can be defined as a summary of the scientific

write up • It is of fundamental importance that the abstract be written

clearly and simply, as it is the first and sometimes the only part of the manuscript read.

• It should provide a brief summary of each of the main sections (IMCAD) of the paper

• State the principal objective and scope of the scientific inquiry

• Describe the methodologies in brief • Summarise the results, and state the principal conclusions

Criteria for an Ayurvedic abstract

• It should not exceed 250 words• It should be written in one paragraph.• It should be written in the past tense as it refers to

work done.• Long words should be followed by its abbreviation

which would be used through out the abstract and paper.

• It should cite relevant references if any as Ayurvedic research is primarily led by Basic science.

The Introduction The introduction should answer the following questions:• What was I studying?• What is the applied relevance of this core element of basic science

chosen for study ?• What did I know about this topic from Basic science of Ayurveda

before I did this study and how did I improve later in both knowledge and application ?

• What was the selection criteria from basic science adopted in research prticipants of the study and why?

• What approach led by basic science did I take to explore the cause- mechanism- effect of the core element and how can I substantiate the results based on the same ?

Important rules in Introduction

• Cite the specific limited science based evidences (not general and vague references )chosen from samhithas .

• Define any technical terms or abbreviations if any .

Writing Materials &Methods section

• Provide CME of the analysis with clarity so that the experiments are reproducible

• If the peer reviewer has doubts regarding the CME presented and its applicability in repeating experiment , he could ask for the explanation of the same .

• Organize the materials and methods employed from Basic science of Ayurveda for designing the research and substantiate their validity in the context.

• Describe the CME in detail with clarity and objectivity.• Do not mix conclusion in this section

Materials • Must identify accurately regarding the subjects ( research

participants) as well objects ( medicinal formulations , herbs etc )

• The source of subjects studied, number of individuals in each group used, their sex, age, and weight must be clearly stated

• Human subjects are to be used in any scientific research of Ayurveda as Ayurveda is Basic science of human being .The criteria for selection should be described, and justified based on the standards of basic science .

• For chemicals used, include exact technical specifications and source or method of preparation based on classical texts .

Methods • The CME must be clear, precise and concise so that it can be

reproducible• If any method is applied new, science based justification for its

selection and applicability must be clearly provided• Questions such as “how” or “how much”or “why” must be

answered by scientific reasoning and not left to be puzzled over• Methods used for statistical analyses if relevant could be

applied with secondary importance for data based establishment of science based primary evidences. But statistical methodologies employed should be completely in conformity with the scientific standards of Ayurveda

How to write results ?• Results section is written in the past tense• It is the core or heart of the paper• It needs to be clearly and simply stated since it constitutes the

add on applied knowledge of Basic science of Ayurveda contributed to the world

• The purpose of this section is to summarize and illustrate the effects in an orderly and logical sequence of basic science by cause- mechanism analysis .

• The text should guide the reader through the CME interrelation emphasising upon the science based rationale .

• Results should signify science rather than statistics

Data presentation

• In Ayurevda, data based evidence is secondary to primary science led evidence ( rationale) which originally guides the scientiufic inquiry .

• Replacing the latter by former is not scientific research in Ayurveda.

• Tables , graphs and figures must display true data and observations of the study .

How to write discussion

• It is the most interesting section to write and review as well .

• Its primary purpose is to show the rationalised relationship of CME explained in Basic science

• It should end with a short summary or conclusion regarding the significance of this study and its objective .

Components of discussion • Always document the science based intentions and CME with clarity and

specificity.• Show how your scientific inquiry, results and interpretations agree or

contrast with previously published works.• Ayurvedic research is not based on the theoretical (incompletely proven)

implications but rather based on theorems (proven and settled basic science intentions). So all possible practical applications explored are to be discussed with clarity.

• State your conclusions as clearly as possible.• Summarize your science led evidence for each conclusion• Data led evidences are just to display results in Ayurveda. Science led

evidences are originally to prove the scientificity of diagnosis and treatment .

Referencing • Referencing is a standardized way of acknowledging the

sources of information and ideas that you have used in your document.

• A list of ALL the references used in the text must be written. • Any papers not cited in the text should not be included.• Reference lists allow readers to investigate the subject in

greater depth. • A reference list contains only the books, articles, and web

pages etc that are cited in the text of the document. A bibliography includes all sources consulted for background or further reading.

In name and year system

• The reference list is arranged alphabetically by author. If an item has no author, it is cited by title, and included in the alphabetical list using the first significant word of the title.

• If more than one item has the same author, list the items chronologically, starting with the earliest publication.

• Each reference appears on a new line.• There is no indentation of the references• There is no numbering of the references

Ethics, rights and permissions

• Beware of originality and copyrights of others.• Do not copy anything without giving the credit

to the owner by referencing it.• In some cases permissions are needed• Repetitive publication of the same ideas is

considered plagiarism

To conclude

• Ayurvedic scientific paper format is entirely different from that of Modern science .

• Clarity and objectivity of Ayurvedic scientific paper is entirely dependent upon the pertinent employment of basic science based rationale, research methodologies and appraisal techniques which is no way connected to that of modern science .

• Instead of IMRAD format of Modern science, IMCAD format is inevitable for establishing scientificity of Ayurveda.

To conclude

• A scientific paper in Ayurveda should be primarily led by basic science of Ayurveda, not misled by statistics.

• Statistics in Ayurveda is only to display the results , neither to apply science nor to explore the same.

• Research methodologies explained in Ayurevda are to be made as compulsory part of curriculum of BAMS, MD and PhD because in Ayurveda to become a successful practitioner, one should become an excellent scientist also .

THANKYOU