Traditional Chinese Medicine and Infertility - Part IIWritten by Dr. Mike Berkley
INFERTILITY AND TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE PART II In Part I, we considered proper treatment methods of Traditional Chinese Medicine and The Four Examinations,which date back over three thousand years. In this section, we will look at mechanisms of action of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It was shown in a study done at Harvard that stress reduces hypothalamic-anterior pituitary-ovarian axis function, thus being a factor to be considered in infertility work-up. Acupuncture releases endorphins which mitigate ones response to stressful stimuli thus enhancing possibility for conception. "Historically, infertility, particularly "functional" infertility, was attributed to abnormal psychological functioning on part of one or both members of couple. Preliminary works in 1940s and 1950s considered "psychogenic infertility" as major cause of failure to conceive in as many as 50% of cases. As recently as late 1960s, it was commonly believed that reproductive failure was result of psychological and emotional factors. Psychogenic infertility was supposed to occur because of unconscious anxiety about sexual feelings, ambivalence toward motherhood, unresolved oedipal conflict, or conflicts of gender identity. Fortunately, advances in reproductive endocrinology and medical technology as well as in psychological research have de-emphasized significance of psychopathology as basis of infertility, and modern research shows that there is little evidence to support a role for personality factors or conflicts as a cause of infertility. This perspective unburdens couple by relieving them of additional guilt of thinking that it is their mental stress that may be responsible for their infertility. Biologically, since hypothalamus regulates both stress responses as well as sex hormones, it's easy to see how stress could cause infertility in some women. Excessive stress may even lead to complete suppression of menstrual cycle, and this is often seen in female marathon runners, who develop "runner's amenorrhea". In less severe cases, it could cause anovulation or irregular menstrual cycles. When activated by stress, pituitary gland also produces increased amounts of prolactin, and elevated levels of prolactin could cause irregular ovulation. Since female reproductive tract contains catecholamine receptors catecholamines produced in response to stress may potentially affect fertility, for example, by interfering with transport of gametes through Fallopian tube or by altering uterine blood flow. However, more complex mechanisms may be at play, and researchers still don't completely understand how stress interacts with reproductive system. This is a story, which is still unfolding, and during last 20 years, new field of psychoneuroimmunology has emerged, which focuses on how your mind can affect your body. Research has shown that brain produces special molecules called neuropeptides, in response to emotions, and these peptides can interact with every cell of body, including those of immune system. In this view, mind and body are not only connected, but also inseparable, so that it is hardly surprising that stress can have a negative influence on fertility. Stress can reduce sperm counts as well. Thus, testicular biopsies obtained from prisoners awaiting execution, who were obviously under extreme stress, revealed complete spermatogenetic arrest in all cases. Researchers have also showed significantly lower semen volume and sperm concentration in a group of chronically stressed marmoset monkey, and these changes were attributed to lower concentrations of LH and testosterone (which were reduced in stressed group). However, how relevant these research findings are in clinical practice is still to be determined."
| | Traditional Chinese Medicine and Infertility - Part IIIWritten by Dr. Mike Berkley
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE AND INFERTILITY - PART IIIIn beginning sections of this article, we considered proper treatment methods of Traditional Chinese Medicine and The Four Examaminations, a method of diagnosis that dates back over three thousand years. We also looked at mechanisms of action with TCM and accupuncture. In this final section we will consider combined diagnostics of Eastern and Western Medicine along with uses of herbal medicine in treatment of infertility. A DIAGNOSTIC WINDOW - EAST MEETS WEST One TCM diagnosis which exists and which may be etiologic for male or female infertility is called Liver qi stagnation. One of key identifiers of an individual with pattern differentiation of Liver qi stagnation is anger, rage, frustration, depression and anxiety. "Symptoms of depression, anxiety, and anger may help in determining nature of infertility experienced by some couples, and identify those who would benefit most from psychological counseling, suggest researchers. Dr. Secondo Fassino (University School of Medicine, Turin, Italy) and colleagues recorded personal characteristics of 156 infertile and 80 fertile couples, and measured their degree of psychopathology. When researchers divided couples according to nature of infertility-organic, functional, or undetermined-they found that triad of anxiety, depression, and a tendency toward anger suppression successfully predicted diagnosis of organic or functional infertility in women, with 97 percent accuracy. For infertile men, anxiety was also an important independent predictor of functional infertility, increasing likelihood of having this form of infertility five-fold, while depression was more predictive of organic infertility. However, with men - unlike women - anger did not appear to influence infertility in men. The results suggest possibility of identifying a subgroup of infertile subjects where, beyond distress that is consequent to failure of repeated attempts to conceive a baby, there is also a poorly adaptive psychological functioning, which is likely to play an important role in onset and course of functional infertility," team concludes.” It is becoming more and more prevalent that research conducted by Western scientists and physicians are highlighting veracity and effectiveness of Traditional Chinese Medicine. HERBAL MEDICINE The efficacy of herbal medicine in treating infertility is indisputable to patient community although mechanism of action is not completely understood at this time. Similarly mechanism of action of tricyclic antidepressants is not fully understood in its effect on chronic pain (i.e., in case of fibromyalgia), but its efficacy has been maintained. Practitioners of Chinese herbal medicine rarely use a single herb in treatment. Chinese herbs are formula based; many herbs are mixed together to create perfect 'decoction' specifically designed for individual patient.
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