Difference between Blood Stasis and Blood Stagnation, with examples?

[Guest guest]

Hi Ray

 

Ray Rubio wrote:

> Chanalee - Although it is not impossible to reduce ovarian cysts

> and endometriosis with acupuncture, better results are usually

> achieved with Chinese Herbal Medicine. Because blood stasis is not

> the same thing as stagnant blood (endometriosis and ovarian cysts

> being the latter), internal medicine (herbal agents) are usually

> employed to treat this, and they are quite effective. You may

> contact me off-list at rtoo if you would like more

> information on this. Ray Rubio, L. Ac.

 

Ray, could you explain in detail what you mean by the statement:

" ... blood stasis is not the same thing as stagnant blood

(endometriosis and ovarian cysts being the latter), ... herbal agents

are usually employed to treat this, and they are quite effective. ... "

 

What are your definitions of " Blood Stasis " versus " Blood

Stagnation " ?

 

Could you give examples of each type, please, with examples of

classical (or modern) formulas used to treat each kind?

 

In which categories do you place the following:

 

1. Peripheral ischaemia (as in frostbite, ergotism, cardiac

insufficiency, diabetic ischaemia)?

 

2. Cardiac / cerebral ischaemia, as in arteriosclerosis or arterial

plaque)?

 

3. Acute myocardial infarction, acute CVA/stroke?

 

4. Traumatic injury wirh severe bruising?

 

5. Gynaecological examples?

 

Ray, please keep the discussion ON the list! That would be most

informative for me anyway!

 

 

Best regards,

 

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[Guest guest]

Phil -

 

Sorry it took so long to reply, but there is a flu going around here in

Los Angeles...

 

I think that one of the best discussions on the subject of blood

stasis/stagnant blood (oketsu) that I have encountered in English can

be found on pages 43 and 44 of " Kampo Treatment for Climacteric

Disorders " by Yoshiharu Shibata, M.D. and Jean Wu. It reads as follows:

 

" When discussing the difference between blood stasis and stagnant

blood, we are looking at a process/continuum. In the most narrow sense,

blood stasis refers to blood that is no longer free-flowing and has

lost it's physiological function; namely stagnant blood in the vessels

(venous congestion, blood clot, thrombus, etc.) or extravasated blood

accumulating in the surrounding tissues (internal bleeding).

 

Utilizing the modern concept of impaired microcirculation (small veins

and capillaries), attempts to define the pathology of blood stasis have

identified it with several interrelated abnormalities:

 

1. abnormally high blood density or viscosity

2. defects in clotting or anti-clotting mechanisms

3. vascular damage or obstruction

4. congestion due to increased flow of blood to the area, reduced

drainage of blood from the area, or backpressure in the circulation.

 

Of course, each of the above can lead to secondary changes such as:

 

a. insufficient blood supply (impaired perfusion of organs and tissues

due to microthrombus formation)

b. bleeding (abnormal clotting process)

c. systemic or local edema (increased vascular permeability due to

congestion)

d. neuroendocrine and other imbalances.

 

Blood Stasis and Stagnant Blood can encompass the following Modern

Disease Entities:

 

a. Acute inflammatory disorders, e.g., impact trauma - blood stasis

b. Chronic inflammatory disorders, e.g., chronic hepatitis,

inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis - blood stasis

c. Pathologic changes of blood and vessels, e.g., varicose veins,

hemorrhoids, arteriosclerosis, hyperlipidemia, purpura, hyperviscosity

syndromes, disseminated intravascular coagulation. - blood stasis

d. Gynecological disorders, e.g., endometriosis, uterine fibroids,

ovarian cysts - stagnant blood

e. tumors and neoplasms - stagnant blood "

 

 

 

I think that although blood stasis and stagnant blood are each part of

the same process on a physiological and pathological continuum, the

difference is perhaps one of degree. For this reason, actual growths

such as ovarian cysts, uternine fibroids, endometrial tissue, and

neoplasms or tumors are more substantial and fixed in location, and

therefore classified as stagnant blood. Conversely, ischemias -

peripheral, cerebral or caridiac - because they involve congestion in

blood flow, or circulation within the blood vessels, tend to be

classified as blood stasis/thickened blood.

 

When using herbal agents and formulae to address the blood

stasis/stagnant blood, again we are talking about a difference in

degree. There is an excellent discussion of the difference between the

blood invigorating agents in the " Summary of Comparative Functions "

section of revised edition of the Materia Medica by Dan Bensky and

Andrew Gamble. In order of increasing strength from those agents that

increase blood circulation (blood stasis) to those that can break up

immobile masses (stagnant blood) are some of the following: hong hua

(carthamus), tao ren (persica), si gua luo (luffa), chuan xiong

(ligusticum), yan hu suo (corydalis),

dan shen (salvia), ji xue teng (millettia) - to more potent " blood

breakers " san leng (sparganum), e zhu (curcuma), di bi chong

(eupolyphagia), shui zhi (hirudo).

 

In terms of classical formulae to treat Blood stasis/Stagnant blood we

could include the following:

 

a. Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang - Cardiac Ischaemia, Atherosclerosis

b. Tao Hong Si Wu Tang - Mild Dysmenorrhea

c. Shen Tong Zhu Yu Tang - Fibromyalgias, Arthralgias, Post-Concussion

syndromes, Cerebral Ischaemias,

d. Qi Li San - Acute Traumatic Injuries (impact traumas, surgeries,

broken bones)

e. Dang Gui Si Ni Tang - peripheral ischaemias, neuropathies, reynaulds

phenomena, Buerger's Disease.

f. Bu Yang Huang Wu Tang - Sequelae of stroke

g. Gui Zhi Fu Ling Tang/Ze Chong Yin - Endometriosis, Uterine Fibroids,

Ovarian Cysts.

h. Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang - Hepatosplenomegaly, cirrhosis, Uterine

Fibroids, Endometriosis.

I. Shao Fu Zhu Yu Tang - Ovarian Cysts, Endometriosis, Epidydimitis.

g. Tao He Cheng Qi Tang - Uterine Myomas, Intestinal Obstruction.

 

Of course the above discussion is limited as the subject of blood

stasis/stagnant blood in TCM has spawned entire books. It is of course

limited by the limited experience of yours truly. I hope this is

somewhat helpful, and I would love to hear the input and experiences of

others on the list.

 

Ray Rubio.

 

 

On Nov 10, 2004, at 9:32 PM, wrote:

 

>

> Hi Ray

>

> Ray Rubio wrote:

>> Chanalee - Although it is not impossible to reduce ovarian cysts

>> and endometriosis with acupuncture, better results are usually

>> achieved with Chinese Herbal Medicine. Because blood stasis is not

>> the same thing as stagnant blood (endometriosis and ovarian cysts

>> being the latter), internal medicine (herbal agents) are usually

>> employed to treat this, and they are quite effective. You may

>> contact me off-list at rtoo if you would like more

>> information on this. Ray Rubio, L. Ac.

>

> Ray, could you explain in detail what you mean by the statement:

> " ... blood stasis is not the same thing as stagnant blood

> (endometriosis and ovarian cysts being the latter), ... herbal agents

> are usually employed to treat this, and they are quite effective. ... "

>

> What are your definitions of " Blood Stasis " versus " Blood

> Stagnation " ?

>

> Could you give examples of each type, please, with examples of

> classical (or modern) formulas used to treat each kind?

>

> In which categories do you place the following:

>

> 1. Peripheral ischaemia (as in frostbite, ergotism, cardiac

> insufficiency, diabetic ischaemia)?

>

> 2. Cardiac / cerebral ischaemia, as in arteriosclerosis or arterial

> plaque)?

>

> 3. Acute myocardial infarction, acute CVA/stroke?

>

> 4. Traumatic injury wirh severe bruising?

>

> 5. Gynaecological examples?

>

> Ray, please keep the discussion ON the list! That would be most

> informative for me anyway!

>

>

> Best regards,

>

> Email: <