What best explains the samprapti of shotha?

• A. It arises from dehydration and poor diet.
• B. Disturbed vyana and prana cause semipermeability of cell membranes to be disturbed; Vata, Pitta, or Kapha with rasa penetrate into the interstitial space/capillary space causing swelling.
• C. It is due to bacterial infection.
• D. It is caused by hormonal imbalance only.

Answer: (B)

Shotha (edema) in this framework comes from a disturbance in the movement and balance of fluids through the body's channels. When vyana prana is disturbed, the normal control of capillary and tissue fluid shifts is affected, allowing rasa—the circulating fluid component—to leak into the interstitial spaces and capillary beds. The involvement of doshas (vata, pitta, or kapha) with rasa explains why this leakage and swelling can occur in different tissues and under various conditions. In short, the swelling arises from altered microcirculation and increased movement of fluid from vessels into tissues, not from a single nutrient deficiency, infection, or hormonal imbalance alone.

Dehydration or poor diet don’t explain this core sequence of fluid misdistribution. Bacterial infection can cause edema through inflammation, but that’s a different pathway. Hormonal imbalance alone doesn’t capture the underlying mechanism of fluid leakage described here.