Utilization of Traditional Chinese Medicine in a Men's Health Polyclinic-Clinical Characteristics and Literatures Review for Treatment Options

Abstract

Traditional medicine has become an increasingly common treatment option for many patients. Traditional Chinese medicine is one of the more popular modalities. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical characteristics of the needs of male subjects who visited a traditional Chinese medicine expert in a men's health polyclinic. A total of 231 male patients visited a men's health polyclinic comprised of psychiatry, andrology and traditional Chinese medicine. Participants completed a set of general data and screening assessments, including the Androgen Deficiency in Aging Males Questionnaire, the Aging Males' Symptoms Rating Scale, Insomnia Severity Index, Chinese version of the Beck Depression Inventory-II, Chinese version of the Beck Anxiety Inventory, Gotland Male Depression Scale, the abridged 5-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function, and the Situational Fatigue Scale. Blood testing, including a profile of sex hormone levels, was selectively performed according to clinical needs. Eighty-six males (37.2%) sought traditional Chinese medicine. The subjects who had been to traditional Chinese medicine before had a higher rate of erectile dysfunction and infertility complaints, and lower scores on the Gotland Male Depression Scale as compared to those who had never been to traditional Chinese medicine. Infertile male patients seek help from traditional Chinese medicine due to oligo-astheno-tetratozoo-spermia syndrome or failure to achieve pregnancy after treatment for correctable causes such as varicocele. Specific symptoms of male depression might be related to overall sexual complaints rather than to erectile dysfunction specifically. Herbal medicine may be an alternative and complementary treatment for male infertility, erectile dysfunction and mood disturbances, but further research is necessary to determine its efficacy in the male population.