Mounting

Any of various diseases characterized by pain or swelling of the abdomen, groin, or scrotum. Traditional literature describes many different diseases and patterns labeled as mounting. Mounting disease includes the following: a) conditions marked by enlargement of the scrotum, including inguinal hernia or scrotal hydrocele; b) other diseases of the external genitals in males or females; c) conditions marked by severe abdominal pain with urinary and fecal blockage.

1. Conditions characterized by the protrusion of the abdominal contents through the abdominal wall, the groin, or base of the abdominal cavity, and usually associated with qì pain. Terms for such conditions include mounting qì (疝气 shàn qì), foxlike mounting (狐疝 hú shàn), small intestine mounting qì (小肠疝气> xiǎo cháng shàn qì), and small intestine mounting qì pain (小肠疝气痛 xiǎo cháng shàn qì tòng). Confucian Filiality (儒门事亲 rú mén shì qīn) describes this condition as follows: In foxlike mounting.... when lying, [it] goes into the smaller abdomen; when walking or standing, it comes out of the smaller abdomen and goes into the [yin] sac. Biomedical correspondence: inguinal hernia. Note that the Chinese equivalent of the biomedical term inguinal hernia is 疝气 shàn qì.
2. Conditions other than inguinal hernia, characterized by enlargement of the scrotum. Orthodox External Medicine (外科正宗 wài kē zhèng zōng) states, There is a water mounting, characterized by smoothness and glossiness [of the scrotum], by the absence of heat and redness, swelling and pain, with water gathering in it sometimes. Confucian Filiality (儒门事亲 rú mén shì qīn) states, downfall mounting is marked by a scrotum that is swollen as a large as a dipper, without itching or pain. Biomedical correspondence: hydrocele; hematoma of testis; elephantiasis of the scrotum; traumatic injury of testis; orchitis.
3. Various other diseases of the external genitals in either men or women. downfall mounting, for example, can mean protrusion of the vagina.
4. Urogenital diseases. For example, Confucian Filiality (儒门事亲 rú mén shì qīn) states, Sinew mounting is characterized.... possibly pain in the penis, in severe cases with itching, or yīn protraction [i.e., persistent erection], or white fluid like semen coming out with the urine. Biomedical correspondence: cystitis, prostatitis.
5. Certain tumors, or uterine or bladder conditions. The Origin and Indicators of Disease (诸病源候论 zhū bìng yuán hòu lùn): Accumulations and gatherings in the abdomen below umbilicus are called bowel mountings. (腑疝 fǔ shàn).
6. Swellings in the groin. Biomedical correspondence: bubo. In The Golden Mirror of Medicine (医宗金鑑 yī zōng jīn jiàn), blood mounting refers to this.
7. Digestive tract and abdominal conditions. For example, cold mounting in the Essential Prescriptions of the Golden Cabinet (金匮要略 jīn guì yào lüè) refers to severe abdominal pain due cold.
8. Certain forms of acute abdominal pain associated with urinary and fecal stoppage.

Etymology

Chin 疝 shàn is composed of 疒 chuáng, illness, with 山 shān, mountain. The term 疝 shàn appears in the The Yellow Emperor’s Inner Classic (黄帝内经 huáng dì nèi jīng). Plain Questions (素问 sù wèn, gǔ kōng lùn) says: In disease of the controlling vessel (rèn mài), there is, in men, internal binding [to form] the seven mountings and, in women, [diseases] under the girdle, conglomerations, and gatherings. However, what the seven mountings are is not specified. The Magic Pivot (灵枢 líng shū, jīng mài bié lùn) mentions foxlike mounting (狐疝 hú shàn) and slumping mounting (㿉疝 tuí shàn), so these may be considered to be representative of 疝 shàn in the eyes of the Nèi Jīng authors. Probably because the area affected by foxlike mountain and slumping mounting lay on the controlling (rèn mài) and foot reverting yīn (jué yīn) liver channel (zú jué yīn gān mài), the term 疝 shàn came to further denote other conditions related to these channel vessels, namely conditions characterized by abdominal pain or urinary/fecal blockage. This would explain the wide variety of diseases labeled as 疝 shàn.