Endometriosis Studies

Chinese herbal formulas have been tested against common Western medical treatments for endometriosis, with some surprising results. One such study, conducted at Osaka City University Medical School in Japan, measured immune factors in the blood of a group of women diagnosed with endometriosis. The women were found to have elevated serum levels of anti-endometrial Immunoglobulin-M (IgM) antibody titers, indicating an immune response to the endometrial tissue. One group of these women received treatment with leuproride acetate (Lupron) to suppress hormonal production. A second group received the herbal formula Gui Zhi Fu Ling Wan, which historically has been used in China to treat bleeding during pregnancy due to Blood stasis in the womb, or to prevent miscarriage. In more recent times it has been used in the treatment of immunologic and inflammatory conditions of the uterus, including dysmenorrhea, uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts, chronic pelvic inflammatory disease, inflammation of the fallopian tubes, and endometriosis.

At the conclusion of the study, the Lupron-treated group had lowered levels of estradiol but no change in the IgM antibody titer. The group treated with herbs had no changes in estradiol levels, but the levels of IgM antibody titer were decreased and the patients remained symptom-free for months. It would appear that the herbal formula was able to reduce the body’s immune response to the endometriosis—a hopeful sign when it comes to restoring a woman’s fertility.

Another study done in China treated women with severe menstrual pain. (The authors stated that the primary disease mechanism related to dysmenorrhea is Blood stasis—the same pattern that often creates endometriosis.) A group of 125 women were diagnosed using the principles of TCM, and were categorized into four groups, depending on the patterns they were exhibiting, as follows:

  • Group 1: Qi stagnation with Blood stasis
  • Group 2: Qi stagnation, Blood stasis, and cold
  • Group 3: Qi stagnation, Blood stasis, and heat
  • Group 4: Qi stagnation, Blood stasis, and deficiency

The study began by comparing serum levels of various prostaglandins (a contributing factor in menstrual cramps) in the bloodstreams of all three groups. Then the women were given either Eastern or Western medical treatment. The women treated with Eastern methods received the herbal formula Jia Wei Mo Jie Tang, whose intended purpose is to invigorate the Blood, transform stasis, and move the Qi. (From a Western medical point of view, the formula achieves its effect by regulating serum prostaglandins.) The herbs were taken as a decoction and administered twice a day beginning two weeks before the anticipated start of the period. The other group was given the Western medicine indomethacin, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory analgesic. In both groups, treatment was administered for three months.

In the Jia Wei Mo Jie Tang group, 80.4 percent of women experienced relief from their menstrual pain, compared to 73.3 percent for the indomethacin group. Further, Jia Wei Mo Jie Tang seemed to help balance the reproductive cycle, as indicated by markedly lower levels of a negative type of estrogen. The herbal decoction also increased the content of late phase progesterone secreted by the corpus luteum (essential to creating a proper climate for implantation). Indomethacin, on the other hand, had no marked effect on either estrogen or progesterone. It is clear that Chinese herbal medicines can play an important part in balancing the complex interrelated factors contributing both to the treatment of endometriosis and the promotion of a normal reproductive cycle. But what is most important, of course, is to discover the pattern of imbalance that has caused the individual patient’s problem.

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