TCM Syndrome Differentiation and Classification of Senile Vaginitis

Senile vaginitis belongs to the category of "leucorrhea" and "vulvar itch" in traditional Chinese medicine. When making a diagnosis, the degree of vulvar itch and the characteristics, odor and associated systemic symptoms of leucorrhea should be taken as the focus, and a comprehensive analysis and certification should be made in combination with the tongue and pulse. It is generally divided into the following two types:

Damp heat bet

Symptoms: Elderly patients with this type of disease experience itching and burning pain in the genitals, and even restlessness. They have a large amount of vaginal discharge that is yellow and watery, or pus-like, and has a foul odor. They also experience stuffy wrists, poor appetite, irritability, and insomnia. They have loose and uncomfortable or dry stools, or frequent and burning urination. Their tongue is red with a thick, yellow and greasy coating, and their pulse is weak or slippery.

Cause: The patient is old and weak, with liver depression, spleen deficiency, dampness and heat in the body, which damages the Ren belt, so there is abnormal vaginal discharge; dampness and heat have long soaked the genitals, so there is itching and discomfort; dampness and heat have long affected the urethra, which can cause frequent urination and burning pain; dampness and heat are blocked internally, the spleen fails to function properly, so there is stuffiness and poor appetite; the mind is not nourished, so there is restlessness and insomnia. The remaining symptoms are signs of excessive dampness and heat.

Liver and Kidney Yin Deficiency

Symptoms: Elderly patients with this type of condition have genital itching that is worse at night, with less yellow vaginal discharge or more yellow discharge like water with blood streaks, dry and atrophic vaginal discharge, burning pain in the vagina, accompanied by dizziness, sore waist and knees, fever in the five parts of the body, and sometimes hot sweats. The tongue is red with little coating and the pulse is thin and rapid.

Causes: Elderly patients have liver and kidney deficiency, insufficient essence and blood, and the genital skin loses its nourishment, so it becomes dry and atrophied; the insufficient yin is strong at night, and the positive and negative forces fight each other, so the genital itching is more severe at night; liver and kidney yin deficiency, insufficient essence, and lack of nourishment of the clear orifices, so dizziness and vertigo occur; the external organs lose their nourishment, and the bones lose their nourishment, soreness and weakness of the waist and knees occur; yin deficiency generates internal heat, which can be seen in small amount of yellow leucorrhea; large amount of leucorrhea is like yellow water, which aggravates the depletion of yin fluid and causes more virtual heat; damage to the veins can be seen in the leucorrhea. The rest is a sign of yin deficiency and internal heat.