Assessment of the role of eruca sativa oil (Taramira Oil) in the treatment of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy and its comparison with conventional treatment

Background: this interventional study was conducted in islam central hospital and munawar surgical hospital sialkot. aim: to assess the role of taramira oil (as a counter-irritant) in the treatment of painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy. methods: a total of ninety (90) patients comparable in respect of age,sex,weight,height and duration of diabetes were selected. all of the subjects complained of symmetrical burning pain in feet with the absence of any other obvious cause of peripheral neuropathy. they were divided in three groups (each with 30 patients). one group received imipramine (tofranil),2nd was given carbamazepine (tegretol) and the 3rd group applied taramira oil on the affected surfaces. those patients who required antidepressants and/or anti convulsants due to other problems were excluded. also patients who had diabetic foot ulcer were not recruited. patients were followed up for six weeks and their pain intensity was recorded periodically on a visual analogue scale ranging from 0-10. results: according to results,the patients in each group showed a trend towards gradual decrease in pain intensity grade over six weeks. however the relationship of mean pain intensity grades among the three study groups was not found to be statistically significant at each visit i.e.,p value at 0 week=0.127,at 2 weeks= 0.3,at 4 weeks=0.558 and at 6 weeks=0.732. the relationship between age,sex and duration of diabetes of the three groups was also assessed and was also found to be non-significant statistically. conclusion taramira oil was found to be equally efficacious to carbamazepine and imipramine in relieving the pain of peripheral diabetic neuropathy.