Part Five: Digestive System Diseases

[Chapter 18: Thrombophlebitis ( 349)] [Chapter 19: Primary Aortic Inflammation Syndrome ( 352)] [Chapter 20: Raynaud’s Disease ( 356)] [Chapter 21: Thromboangiitis Obliterans ( 360)] [Part Five: Digestive System Diseases (365)] [Chapter 1: Acute Gastritis ( 365)] [Chapter 2: Chronic Gastritis ( 369)] [Chapter 3: Peptic Ulcers ( 379)] [Chapter 4: Liver Cirrhosis ( 388)] [Chapter 5: Ulcerative Colitis ( 399)] [Chapter 6: Chronic Diarrhea ( 408)] [Chapter 7: Malabsorption Syndrome ( 417)] [Chapter 8: Irritable Bowel Syndrome ( 422)] [Chapter 9: Intestinal Tuberculosis ( 428)] [Chapter 10: Crohn’s Disease ( 432)] [Chapter 11: Reflux Esophagitis ( 438)] [Chapter 12: Chronic Pancreatitis ( 443)] [Part Six: Urinary System Diseases (448)] [Chapter 1: Acute Glomerulonephritis ( 448)] [Chapter 2: Rapidly Progressive Glomerulonephritis ( 453)] [Chapter 3: Chronic Glomerulonephritis ( 458)] [Chapter 4: Hidden Glomerular Diseases ( 465)] [Chapter 5: Nephrotic Syndrome ( 470)] [Chapter 6: Lupus Nephritis ( 476)] [Chapter 7: Allergic Purpuric Nephritis ( 481)] [Chapter 8: Diabetic Nephropathy ( 485)] [Chapter 9: Urinary Tract Infections ( 490)] [Chapter 10: Chronic Pyelonephritis ( 495)] [Chapter 11: Renal Tuberculosis ( 500)] [Chapter 12: Urinary Calculi ( 504)] [Chapter 13: Tubular Acidosis ( 509)] [Chapter 14: Acute Renal Failure ( 514)] [Chapter 15: Chronic Renal Failure ( 521)]

[Part Seven: Blood and Hematopoietic System Diseases (531)]

[Chapter 1: Iron Deficiency Anemia ( 531)] [Chapter 2: Aplastic Anemia ( 534)] [Chapter 3: Hemolytic Anemia ( 540)] [Chapter 4: Leukopenia and Granulocytopenia ( 544)] [Chapter 5: Leukemia ( 548)] [Chapter 6: Malignant Hematologic Neoplasms ( 557)] [Chapter 7: Allergic Purpuric Nephritis ( 559)] [Chapter 8: Primary Thrombocytopenic Purpura ( 562)] Practical Internal Medicine in Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine

[Part Eight: Metabolic and Nutritional Disorders (568)]

[Chapter 1: Diabetes ( 568)] [Chapter 2: Hypoglycemia ( 577)] [Chapter 3: Lipid Abnormalities and Lipoprotein Hyperlipidemia ( 580)] [Chapter 4: Obesity ( 585)] [Chapter 5: Protein–Energy Malnutrition ( 593)] [Chapter 6: Beriberi ( 597)] [Chapter 7: Niacin Deficiency ( 600)] [Chapter 8: Hyponatremia ( 603)] [Chapter 9: Hypernatremia ( 605)] [Chapter 10: Potassium Deficiency and Hypokalemia ( 607)] [Chapter 11: Hyperkalemia ( 611)] [Chapter 12: Hyperuricemia and Gout ( 614)] [Chapter 13: Porphyria ( 619)] [Chapter 14: Metabolic Syndrome ( 624)] [Part Nine: Endocrine System Diseases (628)] [Chapter 1: Hypothyroidism ( 628)] [Chapter 2: Pituitary Dwarfism ( 633)] [Chapter 3: Gigantism and Acromegaly ( 637)] [Chapter 4: Diabetes Insipidus ( 639)] [Chapter 5: Simple Goiter ( 642)] [Chapter 6: Hyperthyroidism ( 646)] [Chapter 7: Hypothyroidism ( 652)] [Chapter 8: Subacute Thyroiditis ( 657)] [Chapter 9: Chronic Lymphocytic Thyroiditis ( 661)] [Chapter 10: Primary Chronic Adrenal Cortex Insufficiency ( 666)] [Chapter 11: Hypercortisolism ( 671)] [Chapter 12: Primary Aldosterone Hypersecretion ( 677)] [Chapter 13: Pheochromocytoma ( 680)] [Chapter 14: Hyperparathyroidism ( 684)] [Chapter 15: Hypoparathyroidism ( 687)]

[Part Ten: Connective Tissue Diseases (692)]

[Chapter 1: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus ( 692)] [Chapter 2: Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis ( 702)] [Chapter 3: Progressive Scleroderma ( 706)] [Chapter 4: Lipoid Inflammation ( 712)] [Chapter 5: Nodular Polyarteritis ( 717)] [Chapter 6: Sjögren’s Syndrome ( 720)] [Chapter 7: Rheumatoid Arthritis ( 725)] [Chapter 8: Ankylosing Spondylitis ( 733)] [Chapter 9: Behçet’s Disease ( 740)]

[Part Eleven: Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders (747)]

[Chapter 1: Cerebrovascular Diseases ( 747)]

Table of Contents [Chapter 2: Migraine ( 757)] [Chapter 3: Acute Myelitis ( 763)] [Chapter 4: Acute Demyelinating Polyneuropathy ( 767)] [Chapter 5: Polyneuropathy ( 772)] [Chapter 6: Trigeminal Neuralgia ( 776)] [Chapter 7: Sciatica ( 781)] [Chapter 8: Facial Paralysis ( 785)] [Chapter 9: Epilepsy ( 789)] [Chapter 10: Myasthenia Gravis ( 799)] [Chapter 11: Neuroses and Hysteria ( 805)] [Chapter 12: Schizophrenia ( 812)] [Part Twelve: Diseases Caused by Physical and Chemical Factors (822)] [Chapter 1: Organic Phosphorus Pesticide Poisoning ( 822)] [Chapter 2: Carbon Monoxide Poisoning ( 826)] [Chapter 3: Lead Poisoning ( 830)] [Chapter 4: Snakebite Poisoning ( 834)] [Chapter 5: High Altitude Sickness ( 840)] [Part Thirteen: Tumors (854)] [Chapter 1: Primary Bronchial Lung Cancer ( 854)] [Chapter 2: Stomach Cancer ( 866)] [Chapter 3: Primary Liver Cancer ( 874)] [Chapter 4: Malignant Lymphoma ( 886)] [Chapter 5: Esophageal Cancer ( 892)] [Chapter 6: Colon Cancer ( 897)] [Chapter 7: Pancreatic Cancer ( 903)] [Chapter 8: Breast Cancer ( 907)]

[Part Fourteen: Acute Abdominal Conditions (918)]

[Chapter 1: Acute Appendicitis ( 918)] [Chapter 2: Biliary Tract Infections and Gallstones ( 924)] [Chapter 3: Ascariasis ( 929)] [Chapter 4: Acute Perforation of Gastric and Duodenal Ulcers ( 933)] [Chapter 5: Acute Intestinal Obstruction ( 938)] [Chapter 6: Acute Pancreatitis ( 942)] [Chapter 7: Ectopic Pregnancy ( 948)] [Chapter 8: Acute Suppurative Peritonitis ( 952)] [Chapter 9: Urolithiasis ( 955)] [Chapter 10: Bacterial Liver Abscess ( 960)]

<!-- translated-chunk:3/261 -->

First Introduction

Chapter One: The Necessity and Inevitability of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine
"Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine"—a crucial issue that has shaped the success or failure of traditional Chinese medicine, is increasingly attracting the attention of medical professionals both at home and abroad, as well as people from all walks of life. As two distinct medical systems developed on entirely different social foundations, their academic frameworks—both in form and content—have evolved into completely separate disciplines. These two systems possess distinct complementary characteristics; contemporary medical practitioners deeply recognize the necessity of integrating them. This aspiration now transcends national borders, becoming a shared vision among medical scholars across East and West, and representing an inevitable trend toward pushing the development of global medicine to new heights.

I. The Origins of Chinese and Western Medicine: Different Social Foundations

Chinese and Western medicine emerged and developed on vastly different social bases. As Engels once noted in "Dialectics of Nature," "When the economic base changes, the entire superstructure undergoes transformation, either quickly or slowly."① The reason why Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine differ lies precisely in the transformations that have occurred within their respective superstructures. TCM became a formal discipline around the 4th century BCE, during a period when China was transitioning from slave society to feudal society. In line with the shift in the mode of production, TCM broke free from the constraints of divine authority and the belief in divine mandates, eventually separating itself from witchcraft. A prominent figure of this transformative era was the renowned physician Bian Que; his work, "The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon" (hereafter referred to as "Inner Canon"), stands as a testament to this profound change. Over the following two millennia, China remained firmly embedded in a long-lasting feudal society (which, after the Opium War of 1840, transitioned into a semi-feudal, semi-colonial society). Its economic foundation continued to be based primarily on individual agriculture and scattered handicrafts. Such an economic structure made it impossible for TCM to provide modern, highly precise experimental tools and equipment—or even the microscopic data essential for contemporary medicine. The only resources available for Chinese physicians to conduct clinical practice and theoretical research were the external manifestations of disease; if anything, the only things they could draw upon were their own thinking and analytical abilities. Prior to the 16th century, Western medicine, like TCM, was built upon a social foundation that lacked the modern industrial revolution.

① Engels, "Dialectics of Nature," People’s Edition, p. 30, 1971.

Western medicine, too, did not possess the modern industrial revolution’s economic foundation. From the 4th to the 3rd century BCE, the works of Hippocrates, the great father of Greek medicine, "The Complete Works of Hippocrates," comprised over 70 treatises, synthesizing the greatest achievements of ancient Greek medicine—and like "The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon," served as a beacon in the world of medicine. Both systems guided and influenced the medical developments and outcomes in their respective regions, each on its own hemisphere. Around the 2nd century CE, the center of Western medicine shifted from ancient Greece to the Mediterranean coast; the academic ideas of "The Complete Works of Hippocrates" blossomed in ancient Rome, where a brilliant medical star rose—a man known as the "King of Physicians," Galen. Galen was born in 130 CE and died in 200 CE. Around the same time, another figure in China—Zhang Zhongjing, known as the "Sage of Medicine" (150–219 CE)—was born. While the former inherited the ideas of "The Complete Works of Hippocrates" and further integrated them with clinical practice, thus establishing a monumental milestone in the evolution of Western medicine, the latter carried forward the academic principles of "The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon" and combined them with clinical practice, thereby creating a unique model for the development of Eastern medicine. From "The Complete Works of Hippocrates" to Galen, and from "Inner Canon" to Zhang Zhongjing, although the social foundations upon which Western and Chinese medicine were built were largely similar, neither possessed the economic foundation characteristic of modern industry. However, because the Greeks and Romans had lived for generations in the Aegean Sea and Mediterranean waters, their turbulent maritime lives instilled in them a spirit of innovation and enterprise. In contrast, the Chinese had long resided in the inland Yellow River region, where their relatively stable agricultural lifestyle fostered a mindset of peace, conservatism, and a lack of boldness. Moreover, after the Western Han Dynasty, the teachings of "Banning all other schools of thought except Confucianism" greatly constrained the Chinese people’s capacity for innovation. In the realm of medicine, while the works of Hippocrates and Galen contained substantial “logical reasoning”—as well as many passages that echoed the principles of "Inner Canon" and "Shanghan Zabing Lun"—they also included some groundbreaking experimental studies on anatomy, physiology, and pathology. These experiments laid the groundwork for Western medicine to emerge rapidly from the womb of ancient Roman medicine when the modern industrial revolution arrived. Although Roman medicine, through the creations of Galen and others, initially bore the mark of “experimental research,” such activities were still largely manual and practical. Without the economic foundation provided by modern industry, these practices ultimately remained bound by the limitations of “logical reasoning,” as medicine at that time could only rely on the superstructure of the economy. As time passed, and more than 1,500 years went by, Western medicine—like its predecessors—remained rooted in a society without major technological breakthroughs in productive forces, continuing to develop and evolve on the basis of old economic relationships. The experimental research sections in the works of Hippocrates and Galen were not widely developed or incorporated into the core of Western medicine; instead, certain maxims and doctrinal teachings outside of their experimental research became sacred dogmas, serving as the guiding principles of the Roman medical school’s “scholastic” approach to limiting innovative thinking. Only after the 16th century was this situation able to change. At that time, capitalism began to take root in the West; thanks to the development of mining and machine-based industries, particularly the invention of the telescope and the microscope, humanity was granted unprecedented access to the mysteries of nature. Natural sciences began to break free from the confines of “scholastic philosophy,” taking giant steps toward modern experimental research. In the field of medicine, the use of microscopes allowed scientists to venture into the microscopic world; the discovery of cells and the re-understanding of blood circulation both emerged from this foundation. In the mid-16th century, modern industry powered by steam engines took shape, profoundly impacting the development of medicine. The precision instruments created by industry accelerated the rapid advancement of basic medical research, leading to groundbreaking theoretical discoveries that soon enabled Western medicine to emerge in a completely new light. Modern Western medicine, composed of disciplines closely tied to clinical practice—such as physiology, anatomy, pathology, and biochemistry—formed a scientific system grounded in experimental research. Each component of this system was closely linked to advances in modern natural science, making it naturally part of modern natural science. Natural science is a complex network of disciplines, where each link promotes and restrains the others, and the progress of one link often drives the advancement of related links. Consider how every invention in modern science inevitably leads to breakthroughs in medical technology. The development of the glass and metallurgy industries gave rise to the microscope; the invention of electricity and the light bulb opened up new possibilities for endoscopic procedures; advances in atomic physics led to the clinical application of X-rays; radar technology provided ultrasound imaging for medicine; integrated circuits enabled CT scans; and isotope technology gave birth to radiography and ECT. In short, most major inventions in contemporary science are directly adopted and utilized by modern medicine. Yet traditional Chinese medicine has always been excluded from the ranks of modern science and technology; none of the achievements of modern science and technology have been absorbed or applied by TCM. The key reason for this is that, from Bian Que in the 4th century BCE to contemporary medical masters like Xiao Longyou and Pu Fuzhou, Chinese medicine has developed over more than two millennia on the basis of individual agriculture and scattered handicrafts. The entire theoretical framework of TCM was formed through “logical reasoning,” rather than the conclusions drawn from experimental research. X-ray machines cannot detect “uncontrolled fire,” and CT scans and ultrasounds cannot detect “the liver’s control over the earth.” Since the founding of New China, especially over the past decade, our country has established a vast modern industrial system, fundamentally transforming its social and economic foundations. Traditional Chinese medicine must adapt to these changes; otherwise, it will forever remain disconnected from modern science and technology, unable to keep pace with the times.

II. The Two Medical Systems Are Completely Different Academic Frameworks

Because Chinese and Western medicine employ entirely different research methods, Western medicine relies on experimental research, while Chinese medicine employs logical reasoning. These differing methodologies have resulted in fundamentally different forms and contents for the two medical systems—but both share the same focus: the human body and human diseases. By comparing the two systems, we can clearly see that they exhibit three distinct tendencies in how they approach the human body and disease:

(1) Western medicine emphasizes microscopic understanding, while Chinese medicine focuses on macroscopic understanding.