Physiological characteristics

Gynecology of TCM is a clinical specialty and concentrates on studying the physiological and pathological characteristics, diagnostic and therapeutic principles and specific diseases related to women. Through a long history of two thousand years of practice and improvement,gynecology of TCM has developed a unique theory based on the physiological and pathological characteristics of women which are quite different from those of men.Women are characterized by uterus, uterine collaterals and uterine vessels in anatomy; menstruation, pregnancy, delivery and child-feeding in physiology; and disorders of menstruation, leukorrhea, pregnancy and delivery in pathology. It is just based on the cognition of uterus,menstruation, pregnancy, delivery and child-feeding as well as their relation with the viscera, meridians, qi and blood that gynecology of TCM studies the pathological characteristics of woman disease and the principles for prevention and clinical treatment.

Physiological characteristics

Uterus
The uterus is located in the pelvis, like an upside down pear, posterior to the bladder and anterior to the rectum. The uterus is responsible for menstruation and conceiving fetus. Under physiological conditions, the uterus is to store essence and blood for menstruation or conception of fetus, demonstrating the "storage" function of the zang organs; and discharge menstruation or deliver baby, manifesting the "excretion" function of the fu organs. That is why it is called "extraordinary fu organ" in Neijing or Canon of Medicine. Such physiological functions of the uterus are closely related to meridians, viscera, qi and blood. The uterus is connected with the heart and kidney through meridians. The heart governs blood and the kidney stores essence. Only when the heart blood is sufficient and kidney essence is abundant can blood and essence flow into the uterus for the preparation of rnenstruation and pregnancy. Besides, the uterus is also closely related to thoroughfare vessel, conception vessel, governor vessel and belt vessel through meridians. Such an extensive relation with the meridians and vessels enables the uterus to connect with the viscera and well accomplish its function in managing menstruation and pregnancy.

Menstruation

Menstruation refers to regular uterine bleeding in women of childbearing age, a manifestation of the normal activity of the reproductive function of women. Normal menstruation occurs once a month. But sometimes under normal conditions menstruation may occur once every other month known as bimonthly menstruation or once three months known as tri-monthly menstruation, or even once a year known as yearly menstruation. If menstruation never occurs in the whole life of a woman, it is called latent menstruation. In some cases menstruation may occur regularly in the first three months of pregnancy without affecting the fetus, it is called menstruation in pregnancy.Such changes in menstruation are regarded as normal phenomena, not morbid.
              
Menstruation is discharged from the uterus, but its production is in close relation with the normal functions of the viscera, exuberance of qi and blood as well as smooth circulation of meridians. Among these factors, blood is one of the substantial bases fur menstruation. But blood is produced from the cereal nutrient transformed by the viscera and transported to the uterus by the meridians.

The production of menstruation is related to the viscera, meridians, qi and blood, especially to the sufficiency of kidney qi and normal functions of the thoroughfareand conception vessels. Kidney qi is key to the physiological development of women all through the life. According to Neijing, at the age of 7 female is gradually rich in kidney qi, starting to change teeth and growing long hair; at the age of 14, reproductive substance has well developed,conception vessel is smooth in circulation, thoroughfare vessel is in predomination, menstruation occurs regularly and pregnancy is possible; at the age of 27, her kidney qi is sufficient and she has reached the age of bearing baby;at the age of 28, her body has perfectly developed; but at the age of 35, yangming meridian begins to decline and her face starts to change and her hair begins to lose; at the age of 42, her body declines further, her face becomes withered and her hair starts to turn grayish; at the age of 49, the conception vessel becomes deficient, the thoroughfare vessel declines, reproductive substance has been exhausted and menstruation stops. At this period, woman is changed in physical building, declines in sex glands and loses reproductive ability.

Leukorrhea

Leukorrhea refers to a little whitish or transparent and odorless secretion in the vagina of healthy women for moistening the vagina. Usually leukorrhea is profuse after menstruation or in the period between two cycles of menstruation or during pregnancy. This is physiological leukorrhea and is regarded as normal. Normal leukorrhea is a yin fluid in the body derived from cereal nutrients which are transformed by the spleen and stomach, stored in the kidney, governed by the conception vessel, controlled by the belt vessel and distributed continuously in the uterus.

Pregnancy and puerperiuln

After the occurrence of menarche, woman is still underdeveloped in the body and genitals, but she is able to get pregnant. The organ for pregnancy and delivery is the uterus. The mechanism of pregnancy lies in the combination of the essence from a man and a woman. If a woman is well developed in kidney essence with free flow of the conception vessel and fullness of the thoroughfare vessel,she will be easy to get pregnant when she has sexual intercourse with a man. The development and growth of fetus in the uterus were vividly described in some of the ancient medical canons.

After pregnancy, qi and blood accumulate in the thoroughfare vessel and conception vessel for pr