Menopause

Literature on Menopausal Syndrome
Qi Zhongpu of the Song Dynasty wrote in Hundred Questions on Women's Diseases: "At the end of a woman's reproductive period, menstruation stops. Menopausal Syndrome results if menstruation resumes after it has stopped." And in Principles of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Xiao Yun of the Qing Dynasty described Menopausal Syndrome this way: "Woman's reproductive life revolves around the blood system. At the end of the seven seven-year cycles in a woman's life, the reproductive period ends and menstruation stops. At this point, the Chong and Ren Channels are impaired and deficient, menopause sets in and amenorrhea begins, resulting in infertility. From this point on, if a woman is not careful and lets overstrain or moodiness get the better of herself, she is susceptible to being taken victim by pathogenic factors, causing the stopped menstruation to reflow again."

Literature on Menopausal Syndrome
Qi Zhongpu of the Song Dynasty wrote in Hundred Questions on Women's Diseases: "At the end of a woman's reproductive period, menstruation stops. Menopausal Syndrome results if menstruation resumes after it has stopped." And in Principles of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Xiao Yun of the Qing Dynasty described Menopausal Syndrome this way: "Woman's reproductive life revolves around the blood system. At the end of the seven seven-year cycles in a woman's life, the reproductive period ends and menstruation stops. At this point, the Chong and Ren Channels are impaired and deficient, menopause sets in and amenorrhea begins, resulting in infertility. From this point on, if a woman is not careful and lets overstrain or moodiness get the better of herself, she is susceptible to being taken victim by pathogenic factors, causing the stopped menstruation to reflow again."

Geng Nian An
Ingredients: Shu Di Huang (Processed Rehmannia), He Shou Wu (Fleece-flower Root), Ze Xie (Alisma), Fu Ling (Hoelen), Wu Wei Zi (Schizandra), Zhen Zhu Mu (Nacre), Ye Jiao Teng (Polygonum Stem), Yuan Shen (Scrophularia), Fu Xiao Mai (Wheat)

Clinical Application:
Zhang has used this formula to treat 382 patients suffering the menopausal syndrome, and reported an overall effective rate of 98.2%.(13) Ten days to one month into the treatment, the patients started showing improvement in mood swings, sleeping, appetite, blood pressure fluctuation, hot flashes, sweating, dizziness, and forgetfulness(14). Ren, et al. has treated 30 Menopausal syndrome patients with irregular coordination of the heart and the kidney, and reported 23 cases resolved and 7 improved.(15) Furthermore, Xing has used a modified version of this formula to treat 35 Menopausal syndrome patients with hyperactivity of yang due to yin deficiency, and reported 8 cases resolved, 20 significantly improved, 6 improved, and 1 without response, achieving an overall effective rate of 97.14%.(16)

Geng Nian An Tang modification
Dai, et al. have treated 45 Menopausal Syndrome cases with a modified Geng Nian An Tang (Shu Di Huang, processed He Shou Wu, Gou Qi Zi, Shan Zhu Yu, Nu Zhen Zi, Mai Dong, Bai He, Ci Ji Li, Gui Ban, and Long Gu), and reported 13 cases recovered, 25 significantly improved, and 6 improved, and 1 without response, tallying up an overall effective rate of 97.8%.(17)

Zi Shen Yang Gan Qing Xin Tang
In combination with psychotherapy, Fang has adopted a heart-liver-kidney approach to treating Menopausal Syndrome and treated 38 Menopausal Syndrome cases with a self-formulated Zi Shen Yang Gan Qing Xin Tang (Tu Si Zi, Han Lian Cao, Nu Zhen Zi, Fu Ling, Dan Shen, Mai Dong, each of Shan Zhu Yu, Suan Zao Ren, Wu Wei Zi, and processed Gan Cao), and reported 16 cases significantly improved and 22 cases improved.(18)

Bai He, Fu Xiao Mai, Long Gu, Mu Li, Dan Shen, processed Gan Cao, Sheng Di Huang, Dang Gui, Bai Shao, Wu Wei Zi, and processed Suan Zao Ren
Chai has used a base formula plus case-specific formulas to treat 45 Menopausal Syndrome cases (the base formulas consists of Bai He and Fu Xiao Mai, Long Gu, Mu Li, and Dan Shen, processed Gan Cao, Sheng Di Huang, Dang Gui, Bai Shao, Wu Wei Zi, and processed Suan Zao Ren; and case-specific formulas are: Liu Wei Di Huang Wan for kidney-yin deficiency, Jin Gui Shen Qi Wan for kidney-yang deficiency, Jia Wei Xiao Yao Wan for liver-qi stagnation and spleen deficiency, and Ren Shen Gui Pi Wan for deficiency of both the heart and the spleen), and reported 29 cases significantly improved, 14 improved, and 2 without response, totalling an overall effective rate of 95.5%.(19)

Treating Menopausal Syndrome with Patent Formulas
Wang, et al. have treated 234 Menopausal Syndrome cases due to the flaring-up of the heart and liver-fire with Geng Nian Shu (Huang Lian, Mai Dong, Bai Shao, and Suan Zao Ren), and reported an overall effective rate of 85.8%, significantly higher than the control group's 48.6% (p<0.01).(20)

Wang has treated 50 Menopausal Syndrome cases with Er Xian Tang, and reported 8 cases recovered, 28 significantly improved, and 14 improved.(21)

Sun has used a modified Di Huang Tang (Sheng Di Huang and Tu Si Zi, Shan Zhu Yu and Mu Dan Pi, Fu Ling and Bu Gu Zhi, and Jiao Gu Lan) to treat 30 Menopausal Syndrome cases. After two months of treatment, clinical symptoms had significantly improved. The difference before and after the treatment evaluated using the Kupperman method(p<0.01). Also, blood FSH, LH and urine Ca/Cr levels before and after the treatment were also significantly different (p<0.05).(22)

Yao, et al. have used Ci Wu Jia Pian to treat 47 Menopausal Syndrome cases due to kidney deficiency, and reported that symptoms improved after treatment, especially, in cases of both kidney-yin and yang deficiencies. Blood FSH, HDL-C, LDL-C and bone mineral content were found to be significantly different before and after the treatment (p<0.01).(23)

Chen, et al. have used Huang Lian E Jiao Jiao Nang (Huang Lian, E Jiao, Bai Shao, and He Shou Wu) to treat 90 Menopausal Syndrome cases. Using the Kupperman method to evaluate treatment effectiveness, the authors have reported 54 cases significantly improved, 31 improved, and 5 cases without response, achieving an overall effective rate of 94%.(24)

Fang, et al. used Geng Nian An Pian (Shu Di Huang, He Shou Wu, Ze Xie, Fu Ling, Wu Wei Zi, Zhen Zhu Mu, Ye Jiao Teng, Xuan Shen, Xiao Mai) to treat Menopausal Syndrome -related symptoms like hot flashes, insomnia and dreamful sleep, moodiness, dizziness and headache, deteriorating memory, and received good results.(25)

Mu has focused on the Eight Liuzhu (multiple abscess) Acupoints (Lu 7, SI 3, P 6, Sp 4, K 6, St 25) to treat Menopausal Syndrome.(27) While Yang has used the ear-pressure method to treat Menopausal Syndrome.(28)