variococele

dabtcm
Hi Kaleb,
Yes, have treated some cases of varicoele in my time....all with varying degrees of success. Basically you have to look at this as a pattern of Blood Stasis in the Lower Jiao and treat according. If it is a chronic condition it is of course much more difficult to treat. The most important thing to remember is the correct use of 'envoy' medicinals such as Li Zhi He, Xiao Hui Xiang, Hu Lu Ba, etc. along with the Blood Stasis dispelling/quickening medicinals that act in the Lower Jiao. Of course the more chronic the condition the longer something like this takes to respond. Also, it is generally one of those conditions that respond well to a minor surgical intervention,.....some mechanical problems require mechanical solutions. On another note, also look into the formulae for the treatment of 'Shan Syndrome' as this is what it most closely relates to in Chinese Medicine. Hope this helps and is a good starting point. Do not hesitate to contact me if you want/need to.

Thanks Bob

The reason I asked was that a patient asked me if I could treat them without the surgery, so far all of my patients have elected to go that root. I remember seeing the option to treat with herbs and acupuncture in the text book and course material but I was wondering if anyone actually had any experience with it because, at least here in Canada, the cost of the relatively minor surgery is covered under our health care.
I had thought about the Blood stasis in the LJ but I knew a piece was missing. When I saw your envoy medicine examples and the Shan disorder the light bulb went on. Thanks for the quick response and for the illumination.

Kaleb

Kaleb,

I have 2 comments.

If the vericocele is in a severe stage, it will probably require surgical treatment.

If it is minor, or has a recent onset, it may respond to TCM. In addition to the blood stasis, Heat must be addressed, as Heat will arise as a result of the Stasis. This is particularly true if the patient has diminished sperm ct or motility, as it is the Heat that injures the sperm.

David J. Karchmer
The Texas Center for Reproductive Acupuncture
Austin - San Antonio - Texas
www.texasfertilityacupuncture.com

I agree with the above statements that surgery is often times the best route to take to actually remove the vericocele. If there is valvular damage and/ or the vessel walls have become weakened and distended then, I feel, that we are not going to reverse this. Sure, we can help invigorate the blood, clear depressed heat and drain dampness in the area, which will lead to improved health. But we will not neccessarilly remove or clear up the vericocele.

This idea goes for vericose veins and the spider veins of rosacea. Again, once the vessels and/or valves are broken and compromised then there is not much we can do to change it, other than alleviate the symptoms and prevent it from getting worse.

Rosacea is a similar syndrome, only happening in the face rather than the groin. After the red erythema and flushing has cleared, if there is still distended spider veins appearing on the cheeks then I usually recommend laser surgery to remove them. The same goes for the vericocele. I have helped many men alleviate their symptoms of pain, sweating, itchness, ect in their groin area, which ultimately lead to increased sperm parameters. I have not seen advanced vericoceles, spider veins, or vericose veins disappear with the use of chinese herbs/ acupuncture.

Trevor