Say Endometriosis

Say Endometriosis

Endometriosis, refers to a condition where active endometrial tissue grows outside the uterus, leading to various symptoms due to its growth, infiltration, and recurrent bleeding. Most ectopic endometrial tissue is located within the pelvic cavity, commonly found on the ovaries, uterosacral ligaments, and rectovaginal septum. Normally, the endometrium grows inside the uterine cavity. However, due to certain reasons, it can appear in other areas outside the uterine cavity, including cases where endometrial tissue is found in abdominal incisions, which is a type of endometriosis.

TCM(Traditional Chinese medicine) believes that the basic pathogenesis of this condition involves blood stasis obstructing the uterus and disrupting the flow of vital energy, which leads to symptoms such as painful menstruation. Blood stasis obstructing the uterus and disrupting vital energy can accumulate over time, affecting the functions of organs and blood circulation, resulting in stagnation of vital energy, phlegm-dampness accumulation, and the pathological changes of blood stasis, qi stagnation, and phlegm-dampness intertwining, gradually forming masses. Blood stasis is the main pathological factor in endometriosis according to TCM.

The general principles of TCM treatment are to regulate vital energy and dispel blood stasis before menstruation, focus on promoting blood circulation, removing blood stasis, regulating vital energy, and relieving pain during menstruation, and tonify vital energy, nourish the kidneys, promote blood circulation, and dissolve stasis after menstruation. It is essential to combine disease differentiation with syndrome differentiation. For patients with primary symptoms of dysmenorrhea, the emphasis is on removing blood stasis and relieving pain. For those with irregular menstruation or infertility, regulating the menstrual cycle and promoting fertility should be considered. For patients with masses and nodules, the focus should be on dispersing the masses and resolving the nodules.