Dhat syndrome
Encyclopedia
Dhat syndrome is a condition found in the cultures of the Indian subcontinent
in which male patients report that they suffer from premature ejaculation
or impotence, and believe that they are passing semen
in their urine
.
In traditional Hindu
spirituality, semen is described as a "vital fluid". The discharge of this "vital fluid", either through sex
or masturbation
, is associated with marked feelings of anxiety
and dysphoria
. Often the patient describes the loss of a whitish fluid while passing urine. At other times, marked feelings of guilt associated with what the patient assumes is "excessive" masturbation
are noted.
This is based on an old Hindu belief that it takes forty drops of blood
to create a drop of bone marrow
and forty drops of bone marrow to create a drop of sperm
.
Dhat is a folk diagnostic term used in India to refer to anxiety and hypochondriacal concerns associated with the discharge of semen, with discoloration of the urine, and feelings of weakness and exhaustion. This cultural bound syndrome is similar to jiryan.
Premature ejaculation and impotence are commonly seen. Other somatic symptoms like weakness, easy fatiguability, palpitations, insomnia, low mood, guilt and anxiety are often present. Males sometimes report a subjective feeling that their penises have shortened.
, as a somatized
set of symptoms, or a result of Western doctors' misinterpretation of patients' descriptions of their condition.
It is very common in Nepali culture as well. Most of them come with the complaints of "drops" and become extremely anxious about it and see it as loss of "male power". It is often related with obsessive ruminations and somatoform symptoms. Others see it as a distinct clinical entity which is less culture-bound than these critics assert, and describe it as one form of a syndrome of "semen-loss anxiety" which also occurs in other Eastern cultures as jiryan and shen-k'uei, as well as in Western cultures.
Chlamydia infection might also be related to it because of similar symptoms in case of infection of the urethra (urethritis), which is usually symptomatic, causing a white discharge from the penis with or without pain on urinating (dysuria).
At other times counseling, anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications have been shown to be of use.
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
in which male patients report that they suffer from premature ejaculation
Premature ejaculation
Premature ejaculation is a condition in which a man ejaculates earlier than he or his partner would like him to. Premature ejaculation is also known as rapid ejaculation, rapid climax, premature climax, or early ejaculation....
or impotence, and believe that they are passing semen
Semen
Semen is an organic fluid, also known as seminal fluid, that may contain spermatozoa. It is secreted by the gonads and other sexual organs of male or hermaphroditic animals and can fertilize female ova...
in their urine
Urine
Urine is a typically sterile liquid by-product of the body that is secreted by the kidneys through a process called urination and excreted through the urethra. Cellular metabolism generates numerous by-products, many rich in nitrogen, that require elimination from the bloodstream...
.
In traditional Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
spirituality, semen is described as a "vital fluid". The discharge of this "vital fluid", either through sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
or masturbation
Masturbation
Masturbation refers to sexual stimulation of a person's own genitals, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation can be performed manually, by use of objects or tools, or by some combination of these methods. Masturbation is a common form of autoeroticism...
, is associated with marked feelings of anxiety
Anxiety
Anxiety is a psychological and physiological state characterized by somatic, emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The root meaning of the word anxiety is 'to vex or trouble'; in either presence or absence of psychological stress, anxiety can create feelings of fear, worry, uneasiness,...
and dysphoria
Dysphoria
Dysphoria is medically recognized as a mental and emotional condition in which a person experiences intense feelings of depression, discontent and indifference to the world around them.Mood disorders can induce dysphoria, often with a heightened risk of suicide, especially in...
. Often the patient describes the loss of a whitish fluid while passing urine. At other times, marked feelings of guilt associated with what the patient assumes is "excessive" masturbation
Masturbation
Masturbation refers to sexual stimulation of a person's own genitals, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation can be performed manually, by use of objects or tools, or by some combination of these methods. Masturbation is a common form of autoeroticism...
are noted.
This is based on an old Hindu belief that it takes forty drops of blood
Blood
Blood is a specialized bodily fluid in animals that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells....
to create a drop of bone marrow
Bone marrow
Bone marrow is the flexible tissue found in the interior of bones. In humans, bone marrow in large bones produces new blood cells. On average, bone marrow constitutes 4% of the total body mass of humans; in adults weighing 65 kg , bone marrow accounts for approximately 2.6 kg...
and forty drops of bone marrow to create a drop of sperm
Semen
Semen is an organic fluid, also known as seminal fluid, that may contain spermatozoa. It is secreted by the gonads and other sexual organs of male or hermaphroditic animals and can fertilize female ova...
.
Dhat is a folk diagnostic term used in India to refer to anxiety and hypochondriacal concerns associated with the discharge of semen, with discoloration of the urine, and feelings of weakness and exhaustion. This cultural bound syndrome is similar to jiryan.
Symptoms
Young males are most often affected, though similar symptoms have been reported in females with excessive vaginal discharge or leucorrhea, which is also considered a "vital fluid".Premature ejaculation and impotence are commonly seen. Other somatic symptoms like weakness, easy fatiguability, palpitations, insomnia, low mood, guilt and anxiety are often present. Males sometimes report a subjective feeling that their penises have shortened.
Culture-bound syndrome?
Some doctors believe dhat syndrome to be either a culture-bound presentation of clinical depressionClinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...
, as a somatized
Somatization
Somatization is currently defined as "a tendency to experience and communicate somatic distress in response to psychosocial stress and to seek medical help for it".This can be, but not always, related to a psychological condition:...
set of symptoms, or a result of Western doctors' misinterpretation of patients' descriptions of their condition.
It is very common in Nepali culture as well. Most of them come with the complaints of "drops" and become extremely anxious about it and see it as loss of "male power". It is often related with obsessive ruminations and somatoform symptoms. Others see it as a distinct clinical entity which is less culture-bound than these critics assert, and describe it as one form of a syndrome of "semen-loss anxiety" which also occurs in other Eastern cultures as jiryan and shen-k'uei, as well as in Western cultures.
Chlamydia infection might also be related to it because of similar symptoms in case of infection of the urethra (urethritis), which is usually symptomatic, causing a white discharge from the penis with or without pain on urinating (dysuria).
Treatment
Cognitive behavioral therapy is the mainstay of treatment.At other times counseling, anti-anxiety and antidepressant medications have been shown to be of use.