The spleen is the postnatal base of life and the source of qi and blood. The spleen manages transformation and transportation as well as commanding blood. The stomach that is internally and externally in relation with the spleen governs reception of food and is an organ with sufficient qi and blood. The thoroughfare vessel also pertains to yangming meridian. Normal functions of the spleen and stomach in woman ensure sufficient blood in the uterus for normal menstruation and pregnancy.
Dysfunction of the spleen and stomach, weakness in reception, transformation and transportation may lead to either insufficiency of the source for transformation, or failure in commanding blood, or retention of dampness, which may further impair the thoroughfare and conception vessels and lead to such disorders like irregular menstruation, metrorrhagia and metrostaxis, amenorrhea, leukorrhagia, morning sickness, edema during pregnancy and prolapse of uterus. So strengthening the spleen and harmonizing the stomach is also one of the important therapeutic methods in treating gynecological diseases.
Such a treatment is especially important for the treatment of menopausal syndrome in the aged women whose kidney qi has declined and both qi and blood have become asthenic. Since these women mainly depend on cereal nutrients, spleen-invigorating therapy for promoting transformation is essential to them. The general therapeutic principles are nourishing therapy for the asthenia syndrome, promoting therapy for the stagnation syndrome, warming therapy for the cold syndrome, clearing therapy for the heat syndrome, elevating therapy for the sinking syndrome and soothing therapy for the adverse syndrome.
Cares should be taken to avoid using warming therapy with excessive acrid and dry herbs to treat cold syndrome, clearing therapy with excessive herbs of bitter taste and cold nature to treat heat syndrome and nourishing therapy with excessive tonic herbs to nourish yin lest yin be consumed by acridness and dryness, yang be damaged by tonic elements and the spleen be restrained by herbs of bitter taste and cold nature. Such errors in using herbs will all seriously impair the spleen and stomach.
The functions of the stomach and spleen in reception, digestion, transformation and transportation are in close relation with the conveyance of liver qi and warming function of kidney yang. Failure of the liver in conveyance and dispersion may affect the functions of the spleen in transformation and transportation and the function of the stomach in reception, leading to chest oppression, vomiting, epigastric and abdominal distension and hypochondriac distension and pain due to disharmony between the liver and spleen or disharmony between the liver and stomach.
Such dysfunctions are commonly seen in irregular menstruation and morning sickness. Such disorders should be treated by soothing the liver, regulating the spleen or suppressing the liver and harmonizing the stomach. If fire in mingmen (gate of life) declines and fails to warm the spleen to promote transformation and transportation, it may lead to diarrhea and edema during menstruation and edema during pregnancy or thin leukorrhagia which should be treated by warming and nourishing the spleen and kidney.
The spleen and the heart are closely related to each other. The heart governs blood and the spleen produces blood, both of which depend on the spleen to transform and transport cereal nutrients. The function of heart yang in transporting blood in the vessels relies on the spleen qi to command. Insufficiency of transformation may lead to deficiency of heart blood, and resulting in palpitation, insomnia, or scanty menstruation and amenorrhea. Failure of the spleen in commanding blood may lead to profuse menstruation, metrorrhagia and metrostaxis which consume blood and cause palpitation and insomnia. So asthenia of both the spleen and the heart is common in disorders of menstruation and should be treated by nourishing both the heart and the spleen.