Blood stasis
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Blood stasis (also blood stagnation and blood stasis syndrome) (BS) is a concept in
History
Practitioners of TCM believe that descriptions of BS can be traced back to the Inner Canon of Huangdi (about 200 B.C.E. in China)[4] and understanding of it evolved with the practice of traditional East Asia medicine (TEAM), however there were no standard diagnostic criteria until the 1980s.[2] Despite this the diagnosis of BS was applied to both chronic internal diseases and external injuries with treatment involving "activating blood circulation to dissipate blood stasis."[5][6]
Standard diagnostic criteria for BS were first established in 1982 in China[7] by the Specialized Committee of "activating blood circulation" and in Japan by Terasawa et al in 1983.[6] These criteria were revised in 1988 in China with the "diagnostic criteria of Blood-stasis symptom-complex"[8] and Terasawa revised the diagnostic criteria in Japan in 1989.[9]
Since 1989 research conducted by TCM practitioners on BS and its treatment has increased[2] and some of this research has shown correlations between BS and abnormal coagulation function,[10] inflammation,[11] and accelerated red blood cell senescence.[12] This increase in research has also highlighted the inconsistencies of BS diagnostic criteria.[13]
Amongst practitioners of TCM and related fields covered by the general term traditional East Asia medicine (TEAM) there is a large body of research on blood stasis.[14] A survey conducted in 2014 amongst practitioners of traditional Korean medicine found that more than half of the respondents still had difficulties with the diagnosis of BS because "objective measurement methods were not readily available"[2] despite, or perhaps because, the diagnostic criteria for BS is regularly revised.[15]
East Asian nations encourage and reward the use of TCM for all ailments[
Criticism
Blood stasis, as defined within TCM, is a pseudo-scientific concept and uses other pseudo-scientific or mystical concepts such as qi, meridians, acupuncture, yin and yang as part of its description. The concept of BS is also based on incorrect knowledge regarding human physiology, in particular the liver. "The Liver stores Blood ... when a person moves, Blood goes to the channels, when at rest it goes to the Liver"[19] and "Blood volume problems indirectly influences our resistance to external pathogenic factors. If this Liver function is normal, the skin and muscles will be well nourished by Blood and be able to resist attacks of exterior pathogenic factors."[19] Mark Crislip, infectious disease doctor, referred to these quotes as "gibberish" in a 2015 Science-Based Medicine article.[20]
Crislip also mentions that "Many researchers are trying to shoehorn BS into vascular diseases such as angina[21] and lipid[22] disorders." He referred to the characteristic symptoms of BS "such as pain in a fixed position, nyctalgia, dark-purple coloring of the tongue or face, infraorbital darkness, sublingual varicosis, blood spots under the skin or tongue, or an astringent pulse" and the attempt to link BS with conditions such as "ischemic heart disease, cerebral vascular accident, diabetes mellitus, chronic gastritis, chronic renal failure, chronic hepatitis, trauma, and dysmenorrhea" as nonsense. He stated that:
"Like so much of the TCPM research, time and money is being devoted to validate with modernity BS concepts that are fundamentally grounded in fantasy."[20]
Purported mechanism of action
In TCM, the spleen and kidneys govern the movement and transformation of qi and fluid and these organs cooperate with each other to participate in the metabolism of water. A functional disorder of the spleen or kidneys would lead to qi stagnation and blood stasis.
Some causes of blood stasis are believed to include: too little nutrients, too much sugar, too little sleep, too much alcohol, lack of movement, too much movement (over-training), emotional stress, trauma, heat in the body, and cold in the body.[3] Recommendations to improve blood flow include not eating while stressed, not eating too fast, breathing, focusing on gratitude while eating, not overeating, avoiding cold foods, avoiding damp foods (peanuts, soy and dairy), eating more of eggplants, cayenne, garlic, ginger, turmeric, shiitake, saffron, vinegar, etc.[3] Treatments include acupuncture, cupping, electrical acupuncture and herbal remedies.[3]
References
- OCLC 14168397.
- ^ PMID 25628796.
- ^ a b c d "I Was Told I Have Blood Stasis. What Does That Mean? | Regionally Accredited Acupuncture" (PDF). AOMA Graduate School of Integrative Medicine. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- PMID 27930547.
- S2CID 40248520.
- ^ ISSN 0287-4857.
- ^ "The First Term Conference of Chinese Association of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine. Tentative diagnostic criterion for BSS". Chin J Integr Tradit West Med (in Chinese). 3. 1983.
- PMID 3255534.
- ^ Terasawa, K. (1989). "The presentation of diagnostic criteria for "Yu-xie" (stagnated blood) conformation". Int J Oriental Med (in Chinese). 14: 194–213.
- PMID 22454656.
- S2CID 72015359.
- PMID 26045884.
- ISSN 1876-3820.
- ^ "Blood stasis - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics". Elsevier B.V. 2022. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- S2CID 3543008.
- ^ Jakhar, Pratik (28 June 2020). "Covid-19: China pushes traditional remedies amid outbreak". BBC News. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- S2CID 54246061.
- ^ "中药药理学家李连达院士逝世" [Academician Li Lianda, a Chinese medicine pharmacologist, passed away]. Sciencenet.cn (in Chinese). 18 October 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
- ^ a b Dragon, Victoria. "All About Blood Stagnation". Acupuncture.Com. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- ^ a b Crislip, Mark (13 November 2015). "Acupuncture/TCPM Crapfest". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved 4 March 2022.
- PMID 24325050.
- PMID 26380446.