Chapter two

Basic theory of TCM

 How is the initiation of TCM?
 From practice and experience
 A long history
 Huangdi Neijing (Huangdi’s Classic of
Internal Medicine)
 The book summarizes the therapeutic
experiences and medical theories of that
time period.
 One of the classical books
 The celebrated ancient Chinese
doctors
 Hua Tuo
 Late Eastern Han Dynasty
 Mafei San
 His prescriptions were astonishingly effective.
 He had prescribed different medicines to treat
the same illness.
 Causes of illness roots internally ,so the
purgative works.
 Zhang Zhongjing
 The Chinese medical sage “ 医圣”
He specialized in the study of typhoid fever.
Contagions ;Contagious typhoid
The so-called typhoid at that time
includes cholera 霍乱 , dysentery 痢疾 ,
pneumonia 肺炎 , flu and some other acute
contagious diseases.
A complete system of theories on pathology,
diagnosis, therapy and prescriptions for
typhoid fevers was founded by Zhang
Zhongjing.

“Treatise on febrile and miscellaneous

diseases”
 Sun Simiao
 “One needle saved two lives.”( a tale)
 Pregnant woman

 “Prescriptions worth a thousand gold for
emergencies”
 “A supplement to prescriptions worth a
thousand gold”
 Li Shizhen
 A great physician and pharmacologist

 “An outline of herbal medicine”

 The book, known as a brilliant

achievement in TCM development, but
also a momentous contribution to the
world’s medicine and biology.
 The essential characteristics of TCM

 The concept of holism

 The human body as an organic whole.

 The human body is composed of a number of
viscera, organs and tissues, which have their
own respective functions.
 Every functions is a component of the general
activity, and inter-influence pathologically.
 Treatment determination based on
syndrome differentiation

 Syndrome differentiation and treatment

determination are inseparable in the
process of diagnosis and treatment of
disease, and embody the combination of
theory and practice.

 Syndromes differentiation
整体观念
Concept of holism/entirety;
Holistic concept;
Holistic philosophy

辨证论治
Determination of treatment based in
pathogenesis obtained through
differentiation of symptoms and
signs
同病异治
treating the same disease with
different therapies

异病同治

treating different diseases

with the same therapy)
经络系统
system of meridians and collaterals

表里关系
exterior and interior relationship
整体观念贯穿于中医生理、病理、诊断、辩证和
治疗的各个方面。
治疗的基本原则是补其不足，泻其有余。

The concept of holism runs through every

aspect of traditional Chinese medicine
including physiology, pathology, diagnosis,
syndrome differentiation and treatment.
补其不足，泻其有余
Basic therapeutic principle in TCM
is to reinforce
insufficiency/deficiency and
purge/reduce excess.
 What are yin-yang and the five-
element doctrine?
 Yin and yang are two aspects of the unity
of opposite things.
 Major concepts of yin-yang theory:
 Opposition of yin-yang
 Interdependence of yin-yang
 Wax-wane of yin-yang
 Transformation of yin-yang
阴胜则阳病
predominance/ excess of yin
leading to disorder of yang
disease;

阳胜则阴病 ?
阳胜则热
predominance of yin leading to heat
syndrome/disorder

阴胜则寒 ？
阳损及阴
impairment of yang involving yin

阴损及阳？

阴阳俱损 ?
 寒极生热，重阴必阳

Extreme cold generates heat and

extreme yin changes/transforms into
yang.
热极生寒，重阳必阴 ?

Relative balance between yin and yang

 Application of yin-yang in TCM

 Yin-yang and the structure of the body

 Yin-yang and the physiological functions

of the body
 Yin-yang and pathological changes in
the body

 The application of yin-yang in diagnosis

of disease

 The application of yin-yang in treatment

of disease
 The five-element doctrine
theory/ doctrine of five elements (five
phases theory)

 Wood fire earth metal water

 They are the five indispensable materials

in human life.
 Used the theory to explain the whole
physical world.

 Inter-promotion; inter-restriction

 To explain physiological and pathological

changes in the human body, and the
relation of the body to the external
environment.
 Characteristics of the five elements
 Five elements zang&fu viscera and other organs

Wood Liver;gall eye tendon anger

bladder
Fire heart;small tongue vessel joy
intestine
Earth Spleen;sto mouth muscle thinking
mach
Metal lung ;Larg nose skin sorrow
e intestine
Water Kidney; ear Bone fear
urinary