ABSTRACT
The spin-offs and potential contributions of Ayurvedic Pharmacoepidemiology are expected to be sizeable: Usage safety records for Ayurvedic drugs, Adverse drug reaction registry for rational therapeutic precautions, Drug dosage adjustments in special age or disease groups of patients, Pharmacoeconomics of Ayurveda vis-a-vis marketing and rational drug policy. As a consequence, the endeavour in Pharmacoepidemiology has been infrequent and at a few centers. But with the growing global demand of Ayurveda and its widespread use in India, an emergent discipline of Ayurvedic Pharmacoepidemiology is likely to strike deep roots, with interesting avenues for research, education and services. Ayurvedic Pharmacoepidemiology will be the study of the usage, acceptability, efficacy, safety, complementarity, and cost-effectiveness of Ayurvedic drugs in a large number of people. It will also encompass fields such as Ayurvedic prescription audits, Ayurvedic drugs outlets/utilization, population pharmacodynamics/kinetics and documentation of untoward or unexpected beneficial effects of Ayurvedic drugs.
