 | Qizhi Gao D.O.M. has twenty-two years of clinical experience as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Doctor. Dr. Gao is certified by the National Commission for the Certification of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine as a Diplomat of Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine. He has a private practice at the Evergreen Wellness Center in Wichita. He can be contacted there at (316) 691-8811. |
Health & Medicine
2002-11-01 14:20:00
How do they differ?
: What is the difference between Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and conventional western medical care (WM)?
ANSWER: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been developing for over two thousand years. Guided by holistic concepts and based on clinical observation and experience Chinese medical experts have developed a unique system of health care with its own characters for the prevention and treatment of disease. There are four distinct areas of difference between TCM and WM: Theory - TCM and WM have their own unique theories for disease detection and treatmentDiagnosis methods - WM primarily uses lab testing for disease detection whereas TCM uses observation, ausculation (hearing), olfaction (smelling), interrogation (asking) and palpation (pulse examination) Treatment methods - WM uses drugs and surgery and TCM uses acupuncture, herbal medicine, massage and Qigong exercise Preventive health care is not generally emphasized in WM. For example, in WM, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is usually treated with corrective surgery. TCM will use a combination of Acupuncture, Massage and Qigong exercises to relieve the symptoms and work with the patient to modify their behavior to prevent further repetitive injury. Let's use a sample case to demonstrate these four differences.A patient complains about palpitation, insomnia, dizziness, blurred vision, numb hands and feet, scanty menstruation and irregular menstrual cycle.In WM medical system the patient may see her family doctor for palpitation, insomnia and dizziness, visit her optometrist for blurred vision, receive an adjustment from her chiropractor for numb hands and feet and consult her OBGYN concerning her scanty menstruation and irregular menstrual cycle.In the TCM medical system the TCM physician believes all the complaints from this patient are related. The TCM physician also observes the patient has a pale complexion, light-colored lips, pale tongue and feeble pulse. In TCM the patient's symptoms are diagnosed as blood deficiency syndrome. The syndrome is often related to a number of causes such as chronic or acute bleeding in various forms, hypofunction of the spleen and stomach, weariness resulting from overthinking, impairment of prolonged illness, homatopoietic disorder due to internal blood stagnation and so on.Dizziness, blurred vision, pale complexion and light colored lips may appear when deficient blood fails to nourish the head, eyes and face. These factors often lead to palpitation and insomnia due to a lack of blood flow to nourish the heart. A malnourished meridian (vessel) leads to numb hands and feet. Additionally, when the meridian is not enriched with blood, the pulse becomes feeble. Finally, when the tongue is not nourished by blood, it becomes light-colored. At this point in the diagnosis, a treatment plan is provided to tonify the blood in accordance with the causes mentioned above, the condition of the patient and the severity of the chief complaint. The treatment may consist of herb remedies (single or mixed herbs), diet, acupuncture or some form of Qigong exercise.
