Guanyuan Mainly Theoretical Discussion And Clinical Experience Of Treatment Of Urinary Retention

Background: The incidence of urinary retention, defined as inability to urinate, is not very low in the clinical practice. The etiology of this disorder includes obstructive, neurogenic, pharmacological and psychogenic causes. It is usually seen in the patients after parturition, after vertebral column operation, after cavitas pelvis operation and in the old age male patients with hyperplasia of prostate gland. The treatment such as urethral catheterization, western medicine therapy cannot improve the symptom effectively and maybe influences the quality of life of patients.Objective: To discuss the effectiveness and various methods of the traditional Chinese medicine therapy, especially the treatment of acupuncture and moxibustion to the condition of urinary retention.Method: The paper includes two parts. The first part is review of literature. The first review is about the development of denomination, etiological factor, pathogenesis, treatment and prognosis of the traditional Chinese medicine. The second review is about etiological factor, pathogenesis, and treatment of western medicine. The third review is about the therapy of acupuncture. The second part is discussion, in which I summarize my experience about the treatment of urinary retention with local point Guanyuan (RN4) and supplementary points judged by the traditional Chinese medicine theory through the symptom.Conclusion: Acupuncture produce a marked and rapid effect for urinary retention, with local point Guanyuan (RN4) and supplementary points judged by the traditional Chinese medicine theory through the symptom. Various acupuncture modalities may be used simultaneously if necessary.