Comparison of the causes of infertility induced by ovulation disorders in Persian medicine and traditional medicine

Ovulation disorders are the most common causes of female infertility. Considering the importance of this issue in Persian medicines texts and the holistic view of this medical doctrine in the treatment of ovulation disorders, the present study was conducted to investigate infertility due to ovulation disorders in Persian and traditional medicine.

In this review study, for the collection of data through a library method, all the causes of ovulation disorders were extracted based on classical medicine references, such as Speroff, Danforth, Novak, and Williams. Then, a search was performed in several electronic databases, including Scopus, Pubmed, and Magiran, using the Persian keywords, such as "Oghr", "Infertility", and "Ovulation disorders + infertility", and the English keywords, like "Infertility", "Persian medicine", and "Ovulatory disorder". Only clinical and review studies conducted in Persian or English language and published during 2000-2017 were included in the study. Finally, the overall causes of ovulation disorder were assessed and compared.

In the traditional medicine, the health status of ovarian-brain axis is considered important in ovulation. Similarly, the Persian medicine has given serious attention to this axis. According to the Persian medicine texts, in addition to the ovaries, the health of the brain, heart, liver, and digestive system also affects ovulation. The Iranian medicine scholars divide ovulation disorders into two categories, namely ovum disorders and disorders in the brain and other organs. According to this theory, the restoration of other organs' health is also essential for the treatment of infertility.

The general causes of ovulation disorders were relatively similar in the Persian and traditional medicine. These two medical doctrines had an insignificant difference in the underlying causes of ovulation disorders. In this regard, the Persian medicine gave a special attention to the role of other organs in ovulation disorders, in addition to that of the ovaries. Therefore, attention to the holistic views of the Persian medicine, lifestyle modification, and improvement of the function of all organs, along with traditional medicine, can be effective in the success of infertility treatment