1. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE AND MODERN MEDICINE
--- WHEN EAST MEETS WEST
QIONG DI WU, MSc, BSc, LICACU, TCMCI
TUNG-CHI TRADITIONAL CHINESE
HEALTH CENTRE

2. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE (TCM)
Simplified Chinese: 中医学
Traditional Chinese: 中醫學
Pin Yin: zhōng yī xué

3. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
HISTORY OF
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

4. Several Thousand Years
TCM
Several Thousand Years
MODERN MEDICINE
Several Hundred Years

5. Huang-di Nei-jing (Canon of Medicine): Suwen and Lingshu
The earlist medical classic in China
Compiled between 500 – 300 B.C.
Summary of the medical experience and theoretical knowledge including yin-yang, the five elements, zang-fu, meridians (channels and collaterals), qi (vital energy) and blood, etiology, pathology, dignostic methods, differentiation of syndromes,
As well as basic knowledge of acupuncture points and needling methods

6. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
PRACTICES OF
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

7. MODERN MEDICINE Internal Medicine Surgery Immunotherapy Radiotherapy
Chemotherapy

8. 1. Chinese Herbal Medicine 中药 2. Acupuncture and Moxibustion 針灸
Cupping
Gua Sha 刮痧
3. Chinese Massage – Tui Na 推拿
Die-da or Tieh Ta – 跌打

9. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
THE BASIC THEORIES OF
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

10. MODERN MEDICINE Anatomy Biology Physiology Biochemistry Immunology
Microbiology
Genetics
Pathology
Radiology

11. Yin-Yang Theory
The Five Elements
Zang-Fu Therory
Meridians (Channels and Collaterals)
Qi, Blood, and Body Fluid

12. THE THEORIES OF YIN-YANG
AND FIVE ELEMENTS
The theories of yin-yang and the five elements were two kinds of outlook on nature in ancient China
Chinese ancient physicians applied these two theories in traditional Chinese medicine, which have guided clinical practice up to the present

13. YIN-YANG THEORY
The theory yin-yang holds that the every subject or phenomenon in the universe consists of two opposite sepects, namely, yin and yang
Yin
Female
Foot
Abdomen
Internal
Zang organs
Substances
Xu (deficiency)
Yang
Male
Head
Back
External
Fu organs
Functions
Shi (excess)

14. THE FIVE ELEMENTS Wood Liver Fire Heart Water Kidney Metal Lung Earth
Inter-promoting
Metal
Lung
Earth
Spleen
Inter-acting

15. (CHANNELS AND COLLATERALS)
MERIDIANS
(CHANNELS AND COLLATERALS)
The body's vital energy, qi, circulates through the body along specific interconnected channels called Meridians (Jing-luo 经络)
There are 12 regular channels and 8 extra channels, which connect 400 acupuncture points

16. The twelve regular channels
Hand or foot
Yin or yang
A zang or a fu organ
The spleen channel of foot-taiyin
The small intestine channel of hand-taiyang

17. ZANG FU THEORY
Six zang organs: heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, and pericardium
To manufacture and store essential substances including vital essence, qi (vital energy), blood, and body fluid
Six fu organs: small intestine, gall bladder, stomach, large intestine, urinary bladder, and sanjiao
To receive and digest food, absorb nutrient substances, transmit and excrete wastes

18. ZANG FU THEORY
Each zang organ is linked with a fu organ by a channel, a situation known as external-internal relation
Heart - Small intestine
Liver - Gall bladder
Spleen - Stomach
Lung - Large intestine
Kidney – Urinary bladder
Pericardium - Sanjiao

19. ZANG FU THEORY
Each zang organ opens into a sense organ, indicating a close structural or physiological and pathological relationship between the internal organs and the sense organs
Heart – Tongue
Liver – Eye
Spleen – Mouth
Lung – Nose
Kidney - Ear

20. THE ZANG ORGANS
Heart
Controlling blood and vessels (blood circulation and nourishment of the whole body)
Housing mind (governing mental activities, i.e. spirit, consciousness, thinking, and sleep)
Opening into the tongue: the tongue is the mirror of the heart (colour, form, motility, and sense of taste of the tongue)

21. Liver Storing blood (regulating the volume of circulating blood)
Maintaining patency for the flow of qi (promoting functional activities of the human body including all other zang-fu organs, and regulating emotional activities, especially depression and anger)
Controlling the tendons (the yin and blood of the liver nourish the tendons)
Opening into the eye

22. Spleen
Governing transportation and transformation (digestion, absorption, and transmission of essential substances, and normal functioning of the spleen is required for good appetite)
Controlling blood (keeping blood circulating inside the vessels and preventing it from extravasation)
Dominating the muscles (maintaining muscle thickness and strength)
Opening into the mouth

23. Lung
Dminating qi (air) and controlling respiration (inhaling clean qi to supply the body’s functions and exhaling waste qi)
Regulating water passages (promoting water metabolism by turning one part of the body fluid into sweat to be excreted, also sending other part of the body fluid down to the kidney to be excreted as urine)
Dominating the skin and hair (regulating the opening and closing of the pores on the entire body surface)
Opening into the nose

24. Kidney
Storing essence and dominating reproduction, growth and development (essence in the kidney - the yin of the kidney, either inherited from the parents or acquired from the essential substances of food)
Producing marrow, dominating the bones, and manufacturing blood
Dominating water metablism (one part of the bod fluid sent down by lung is divided by the yang function of the kidney into clear and turbid parts)
Opening into the ear

25. QI, BLOOD AND BODY FLUID
Qi, blood, and body fluid are fundamental substances in the human body to sustain normal vital activities
Qi, blood, and body fluid, together with the zang-fu organs and the meridians (channels and collaterals), constitute the theoretical basis of human physiology in traditional Chinese medicine

26. Qi Qi is involved in physiology, pathology, and clinical treatment
Qi implies both substances and function:
clean qi, waste qi, and qi from essence of food are material qi
the qi of the zang organs, and the qi of meridians are functional qi
Source qi (yuang-qi) – the qi of the kidney
Essential qi (zong-qi) – nourishing the heart and lung
Defensive qi (wei-qi) – defending the body against exogenous etiological factors

27. Blood
Blood is constituted of nutrient qi, body fluid, and essence of the kidney, and its formation requires the co-ordination of the zang organs including spleen, kidney, heart, and lung
Blood and qi are closely related. Clinically, xu (deficiency) of qi often leads to xu (deficiency) of blood, and xu (deficiency) of blood, in turn, often results in xu (deficiency) of qi

28. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
THE ETIOLOGY OF
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

29. ETIOLOGY Six Exogenous Factors Seven Emotional Factors
Wind, Cold, Summer heat, Damp, Dryness, and Heat (fire, mild heat)
Seven Emotional Factors
Joy, Anger, Melancholy, Meditation, Grief, Fear, and Fright

30. TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE
THE DIAGNOSIS OF
TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

31. Standard Laboratory Tests
MODERN MEDICINE
Physical Examination
Standard Laboratory Tests
Special Examinations

32. METHODS OF DIAGNOSIS
Inspection (wàng 望)
Smelling (wén 聞)
Inquiring (wèn 問)
Palpation (qiè 切)

33. Observation of the tongue
Tongue proper
Pale - xu in qi and blood, or cold syndrome due to weaknee of yang qi
Red - heat syndrome of either shi (excess) or xu due to consumption of yin
Deep red - xu due to exhausted yin
Purplish – stagnation of qi and blood
Flabby – larger than normal and whitish, xu in bth qi and yang
Crached – xu of yin and loss of the essnce of the kidney

34. Tongue coating (thin or thick, sticky or dry)
White – thick white coating indicates retention of food (xu in spleen), white sticky coating invasion of cold damp
Yellow – yellow sticky coating indicates accumulation of damp-heat in the interior; dry yellow coating indicates accumulation of heat (damage to the yin)
Peeled (geographic tongue) – long illness and gross xu (deficiency) in the yin

35. Observation of the tongue proper is to differentiate xu (deficiency) or shi (excess) state of the zang-fu organs, qi, blood, and body fluid
Whereas observation of the tongue coating is to judge the condition of pathogenic factors

36. PALPATION - RADIAL ARTERY PULSE

37. Abnormal pulse Superficial pulse Deep pulse Slow pulse Rapid pulse
Pulse of the xu (deficiency) type
Pulse of the shi (excess) type
Wiry pulse
Rolling pulse
Thready pulse
Short pulse
Knotted pulse
Intermittent pulse
Long clinical experience is required to correctly identify the different types of pulse

38. DIFFERENTIATION OF SYNDROMES BY TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

39. MODERN MEDICINE According to the causes
According to the systems or organs involved
According to the degrees or the properties of the diseases

40. DIFFERENTIATION OF SYNDROMES
Traditional Chinese Medicine differentiates syndromes
systematically in three ways
According to the eight principles
According to the theory of zang-fu
According to the theory of meridians (channels and collaterals)
Each of these three lays stress on a particular aspect,
at the same time connecting with and supplementing one another

41. EIGHT PRINCIPLES Exterior vs Interior – the depth of the disease
Cold vs Heat – nature of the disease
Xu (deficiency) vs Shi (Excess) – the opposing force in the struggle between the anti-pathogenic and the pathogenic factors
Yin vs Yang – the categories of the disease

42. Exterior vs Interior – the depth of the disease
Exterior syndromes are mild and superficial
Interior syndromes are mostly severe and deep, with damage of the zang-fu organs

43. Cold vs Heat – nature of the disease
Diseases caused by pathogenic cold and damp are mostly cold syndromes
Diseases caused by heat, summer heat and dryness are mostly heat syndromes

44. Xu (deficiency) vs Shi (excess) – the opposing force in the struggle between the anti-pathogenic and the pathogenic factors
Syndromes of xu type indicate function of the body is weak, the anti-pathogenic factor is insufficient and the co-ordination of yin and yang is impaired
Treatment – reinforcing (bu)
Syndromes of shi type indicate body function is not to the point of impairment and the anti-pathogenic factor is still sufficient
Treatment – reducing (xie)

45. Yin vs Yang – the categories of the disease
Yin and Yang are the chief principles among eight
Yin category – interior syndromes, cold syndromes and syndromes of the xu (deficiency) type
Yang category – exterior syndromes, heat syndromes and syndromes of the shi (excess) type

46. THE THEORY OF ZANG FU To identify visceral diseases:
Syndromes of the heart, liver, spleen, lung, kidney, and pericardium
Syndromes of the small intestine, gall bladder, stomach, large intestine, and urinary bladder

47. THE THEORY OF MERIDIANS (CHANNELS AND COLLATERLS)
Differentiation of diseases on the basis of the physiology of meridians gives direct guidance to clinical therapy by acupuncture and moxibustion

48. PRINCIPLES OF TREATMENT BY TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE

49. TCM
Treats Humans
MODERN MEDICINE
Treats Diseases

50. The human body is endowed with the ability to resist the invasion of different pathogenic factors. This ability is called anti-pathogenic qi (factor)
Traditional Chinese medicine attaches the great importance to the anti-pathogenic factor
For example, well-balanced human bodies can resist most everyday bacteria and viruses, which are ubiquitous and quickly changing. Infection, while having a proximal cause of a microorganism, would have an underlying cause of an imbalance of some kind. The traditional Chinese medicine would target the imbalance, not the infectious microorganism

51. Equilibrium of yin and yang - Healthy
Preponderance of yin consumes yang
(Cold syndrome of the shi type)
Preponderance of yang consumes yin
(Heat syndrome of the shi type)
Weakness of yang causes preponderance
of yin (Cold syndrome of the xu type)
Weakness of yin causes preponderance
of yang (Heat syndrome of the xu type)