Treating Emotion-Related Disorders in Japanese Traditional Medicine: Language, Patients and Doctors

This paper analyses how the conceptual and therapeutic formation of Japanese traditional medicine (Kampo) has been socially constructed through interactions with popular interpretations of illness. Taking the example of emotion-related disorders, this paper focuses on the changing meaning of constraint (utsu) in Kampo medicine. Utsu was once a name for one of the most frequently cited emotion-related disorders and pathological concerns during the Edo period. With the spread of Western medicine in the Meiji period, neurasthenia replaced utsu as the dominant emotion-related disorder in Japanese society. As a result, post-Meiji doctors developed other conceptual tools and strategies to respond to these new disease categories, innovations that continue to influence contemporary practitioners. I begin this history by focusing on Wada Tōkaku, a Japanese doctor of the Edo period who developed a unique theory and treatment strategy for utsu. Secondly, I examine. Yomuto Kyūshin and Mori Dōhaku, Kampo doctors of the early twentieth century, who privileged neurasthenia over utsu in their medical practice. The paper concludes with a discussion of the flexibility and complexity of Kampo medicine, how its theory and practices have been influenced by cross-cultural changes in medicine and society, while incorporating the popular experience of illness as well.     

灵景方治疗冠心病PCI术后焦虑状态（心神失养证）的临床疗效观察

摘要 目的：研究中药"灵景方"对冠心病PCI术后焦虑状态（心神失养证）患者的疗效。方法：选取2022年4月至2023年3月期间，上海中医药大学附属曙光医院心血管科的患者者共64例，分为中药治疗组及对照组各32例。对照组予常规西药治疗，中药治疗组在对照组基础上加用中药"灵景方"治疗，疗程2个月，运用汉密尔顿焦虑量表（HAMA）、躯体化症状自评量表（SSS）、中医证候积分等评估治疗前后两组患者的焦虑程度、躯体化症状程度以及中医临床证候的缓解程度，并分析患者治疗前后血清hs-CRP水平，以评估炎症反应程度，进而评价患者远期预后。结果：治疗前，两组患者在一般资料、HAMA评分、SSS评分、中医证候积分、血清hs-CRP等方面均无差异。治疗后HAMA评分的下降在中药治疗组内有差异（P＜0.05），而对照组组内无差异（P＞0.05），治疗后中药治疗组评分低于对照组（P＜0.05）。治疗后两组中医证候积分均有下降（P＜0.05），中药治疗组评分较对照组低（P＜0.05）。中药治疗组的总有效率为72.41%，对照组的总有效率为56.67%，中药治疗组的有效率高于对照组（P＜0.05）。两组患者SSS评分在治疗后均有下降，且中药治疗组评分下降更多（P＜0.01）。两组患者治疗后血清hs-CRP下降，中药治疗组低于对照组（P＜0.05）。结论：灵景方可明显减轻冠心病PCI术后（心神失养型）患者的焦虑情绪、中医临床临床症候及躯体化症状，提高生活质量，降低炎症反应，对冠心病的远期预后可起到积极作用。     

The Prevalence of Anxiety and Depression in Chinese Asthma Patients

It is well documented that the psychiatric disorders are common in Asthma patients in China while the studies on the relationship between asthma control and psychological disorder are comparatively rare. We therefore performed a cross-sectional study on asthmatic outpatients in one Chinese tertiary center to investigate the correlation among asthma, anxiety and depression. Demographic data, anxiety and depression scores, the level of asthma control were collected in 261 patients. All patients were evaluated with Asthma Control Test (ACT), Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) and Self-rating depression scale (SDS) questionnaires. A multivariate analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between asthma control and psychological disorder. The result showed that 31 asthma patients had anxiety symptom while thirty-five asthma patients had depression. One hundred and ninety-two asthma patients were well controlled and 69 patients were not. The study found a negative correlation between ACT and SAS(r = −0.231, p<0.001) as well as ACT and SDS(r = −0.23, p<0.001) and depression (OR: 12.295, 95%CI: [5.374–28.128], p<0.001) were both independently associated with poor asthma control. We concluded that Asthma control is greatly affected by psychological disorder in Chinese patients.     

中医药治疗疲劳的研究进展

摘要：疲劳是当代社会人类亚健康状态的最常见表现形式之一。它不易引起患者自身的关注，是严重影响人类生命质量的"隐形杀手"。防治疲劳与人类的生命质量和工作效率密切相关，已引起医学界的广泛关注。中国早在东汉时期就有关于疲劳的中医学疗法记载，而中医疗法在不断的实践中得到了丰富与发展。本文以中医药治疗疲劳为切入点，对疲劳的中医发病特点、辨证分型进行考察，并搜集、梳理中医药治疗疲劳的内外治法，以期为中医药治疗疲劳方面的研究提供思路。     

The Excitations and Suppressions of the Times: Locating the Emotions in the Liver in Modern Chinese Medicine

This paper explores how doctors of Chinese medicine have borrowed from a long history of scholarship on the problem of “constraint” to develop treatments for modern emotion-related disorders, such as depression. I argue that this combining of medical practices was made possible by a complex sequence of events. First, doctors in the 1920 and 1930s were engaged in a critical reexamination of the entire corpus of Chinese medical knowledge. Spurred by the encounter with European imperialism, the sudden rise of Japan as a new power in East Asia, and the political struggles to establish a Chinese nation state, these scholars were among the first to speculate on the possible relationship between Chinese medicine and Western medicine. Second, in the 1950 and 1960s, doctors like other intellectuals were focused on national reunification and institution building. They rejected some of the experimental claims of their predecessors to focus on identifying the key characteristics of Chinese medicine, such as the methodology of “pattern recognition and treatment determination bianzheng lunzhi.” The flexibility of the new bianzheng lunzhi paradigm allowed doctors to quietly adopt innovations from their early twentieth century counterparts that they ostensibly rejected, ultimately paving the way for contemporary treatments of depression.     

现代生物医学科技前沿与中西医结合交叉

本文讨论了中医现代化和中西医结合的有关问题,指出中医现代化工作可分为三个方面：第一方面,应当培养大批临床上过硬的中医人才,在临床上有所突破,以此为基础进行理论研究;第二方面,将中医理论转换成现代语言;第三方面,中医与包括现代生物医学在内的多学科结合。阐述了现代生物医学科技前沿与中西医结合交叉而产生的新学科一光子中医学。指出光子中医学将为中西医结合提供理论和技术平台,成为多学科研究中医的代表性学科,并将成为中医现代化的一个重要方向,为人类卫生事业作出重大贡献。     

Magic,myth and medicine

Carrots, celery, caraway and cumin and their relatives in the Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) have a long history of human use dating from our earliest written records. A large body of folklore has accumulated on their magical and mythical curative properties. Many of the early uses have persisted as part of 20th century folklore, sometimes supplementary to modern medicine. Studies largely during the last half of this century have provided the chemical bases for some of the ancient cures.     

中医心理疗法辅助中药治疗斑秃的研究

斑秃患者由于沉重的心理压力和负担,对于本病的恢复具有重要负面影响,与躯体症状形成交互的恶性循环,因此,加强患者的心理调适对于本病的治疗具有重要意义。中医在心理治疗方面有着丰富的经验,中医临床采用的心理治疗方法可概括为：转移注意、劝说开导、暗示开疑、顺情从欲等方法。笔者几年来采用中医心理疗法辅助中药治疗斑秃取得了较好的疗效,在这里与各位同仁共同探讨。     

Prevalence and correlations with depression, anxiety, and other features in outpatients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in China: a cross-sectional case control study

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) often experience depression and anxiety, but little information is available regarding Chinese patients with these conditions. The present study assessed depression and anxiety in Chinese patients with COPD. METHODS: A case--controlled study was designed with 1100 patients with COPD enrolled in the case group and1100 residents without COPD and respiratory symptoms selected as the control group. Anxiety and depression in both groups were evaluated using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). The body mass index,degree of airflow obstruction, dyspnea, and exercise capacity (BODE ) index was used to assess COPD severity. Binary logistic regression models were used to test the association between anxiety and depression. RESULTS: The patients with COPD were more likely than controls to experience depression (cases, HADS 10.5 +/- 3.6, prevalence 35.7%; controls, HADS 8.7 +/- 2.7, prevalence 7.2%) and anxiety (cases, HADS 10.4 +/- 3.1, prevalence 18.3%; controls, HADS 8.6 +/- 2.1, prevalence 5.3%). Subjects with anxious and depressive symptoms had poorer health outcomes including a higher BODE index, a shorter 6-minute-walk distance (6MWD), more dyspnea, and a higher St George's respiratory questionnaire (SGRQ) score. The prevalence of anxious and depressive symptoms increased with increasing BODE scores. On the basis of binary logistic regression, the BODE index was significantly correlated with anxiety (OR = 1.47, p < 0.001) and depression (OR = 1.51, p < 0.001). Anxious and depressive symptoms were also associated with several factors including younger age, female sex, higher education level, lower household income and history of smoking. CONCLUSIONS: This study confirmed the high prevalence of anxiety and depression in Chinese outpatients with COPD. Patients with COPD who had anxiety and/or depression had a poorer health-related quality of life.Trial registrationChinese Clinical Trials Registration(ChiCTR-TRC-12001958).     

Traditional Chinese Medicine Explanatory Models of Depressive Disorders: A Qualitative Study

Culture, Medicine, and Psychiatry - Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical system utilised by many Chinese. However, the knowledge of TCM concepts of depression is limited...     

Signifying the Pandemics: Metaphors of AIDS, Cancer, and Heart Disease

This article offers a symbolic analysis of the cultural construction and signification of three of the major "pandemics" of the late 20th century: AIDS, cancer, and heart disease. It is based on unstructured interviews conducted in Israel between 1993–94 with 75 nurses and 40 physicians and between 1993–95 with 60 university students. Two key symbols, "pollution" and "transformation" are shown to constitute AIDS and cancer within a symbolic space that I suggest is "beyond culture" where body boundaries are dissolved and cultural categories are dismantled. Heart disease, in contrast, is metaphorized as a defect in the "body machinery." The article concludes by arguing that heart attack is depicted as the pathology of the Fordist, modernist body, while AIDS/cancer are pathologies of the postmodern body in late capitalism. [AIDS, cancer, heart disease, semiotics, metaphorization]     

The Psychologizing of Chinese Healing Practices in the United States

This paper explores ways in which Chinese healing practices have undergone acculturation in the United States since the early 1970s. Reacting to what is perceived as biomedicine's focus on the physiological, those who describe themselves as favoring a holistic orientation often use the language of 'energy blockage' to explain illness, whether thought of as 'physical,' 'emotional,' or 'spiritual'. Acupuncture in particular has been appropriated as one modality with which to 'unblock' such conditions, leading to its being used by some practitioners in conjunction with more psychotherapeutic approaches which include valuing the verbalizing of feelings. Some non-Chinese practitioners in the United States, returning to older Chinese texts to develop 'an American acupuncture,' are reinserting diagnoses eliminated from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) by the People's Republic of China as 'superstition'. The assumption has been that many such diagnostic categories refer to psychological or spiritual conditions, and therefore may be useful in those American contexts which favor this orientation. Among these categories are those drawn from traditions of demonology in Chinese medicine. What was once a religious category in China turns psychological in the American setting. At the same time, many who use these terms have, since the late 1960s, increasingly conflated the psychological and the religious, the latter being reframed as 'spiritual'. Thus, this indigenization of Chinese practices is a complex synthesis which can be described as simultaneously medical, psychotherapeutic, and religious.     

腹针疗法治疗冠心病介入术后合并焦虑抑郁障碍患者疗效及对患者焦虑、躯体症状的影响

摘要 目的：探讨腹针疗法治疗冠心病介入术后合并焦虑抑郁障碍患者疗效及对焦虑、躯体症状的影响。方法：选择2021年8月-2022年5月在广东省中医院诊治的冠心病介入术后合并焦虑抑郁障碍患者120例作为研究对象,根据1:1平行对照原则把患者分为试验组与对照组各60例。对照组给予常规治疗,试验组在对照组治疗的基础上给予腹针疗法治疗,试验组与对照组都治疗观察4周。结果：试验组与对照组治疗后的焦虑与抑郁评分明显低于治疗前,试验组明显低于对照组（P<0.05）。试验组与对照组治疗后的心绞痛积分明显高于治疗前,试验组明显高于对照组（P<0.05）。治疗后,两组中医症候积分较治疗前低,试验组也明显低于对照组（P<0.05）。试验组治疗期间的便秘、嗜睡、头晕、心动过速等不良反应发生率为3.3 %,对照组为21.7 %,试验组与对照组对比有明显差异（P<0.05）。结论：腹针疗法治疗冠心病介入术后合并焦虑抑郁障碍患者能促进缓解焦虑抑郁症状还可减少不良反应,改善心绞痛症状,降低中医症候积分。     

Contribution of traditional Chinese medicine to the treatment of COVID-19

COVID-19 as an epidemic disease has spread across the planet since December 2019. The somber situation reminds each country to take actions in preventing the spreading of the virus. China as one of the early affected countries has been fighting against the novel coronavirus with the achievements of nearly 80,000 cured confirmed patients. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has made contributions to the treatment of COVID-19 because of its efficacy and comprehensive therapeutic theory. In this commentary, the advantage, etiology and mechanism of TCM therapy were discussed in the aspect of its functions in reducing the harms brought by COVID-19 to human beings.     

Platelet proteomics and its advanced application for research of blood stasis syndrome and activated blood circulation herbs of Chinese medicine

The development of novel and efficient antiplatelet agents that have few adverse effects and methods that improve antiplatelet resistance has long been the focus of international research on the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Recent advances in platelet proteomics have provided a technology platform for high-quality research of platelet pathophysiology and the development of new antiplatelet drugs. The study of blood stasis syndrome (BSS) and activated blood circulation of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is one of the most active fields where the integration of TCM and western medicine in China has been successful. Activated blood circulation herbs (ABC herbs) of Chinese medicine are often used in the treatment of BSS. Most ABC herbs have antiplatelet and anti-atherosclerosis activity, but knowledge about their targets is lacking. Coronary heart disease (CHD), BSS, and platelet activation are closely related. By screening and identifying activated platelet proteins that are differentially expressed in BSS of CHD, platelet proteomics has helped researchers interpret the antiplatelet mechanism of action of ABC herbs and provided many potential biomarkers for BSS that could be used to evaluate the clinical curative effect of new antiplatelet drugs. In this article the progress of platelet proteomics and its advanced application for research of BSS and ABC herbs of Chinese medicine are reviewed.     

减肥降脂活性成分的研究

肥胖是一种慢性营养性疾病,本质是机体的能量代谢平衡发生紊乱,随着人们生活水平的提高和生活方式的改变,肥胖已经成为危害人类健康的第一大杀手。肥胖能诱发一系列慢性代谢疾病,如II型糖尿病、高血压、高血脂等。然而市场上化学减肥产品种类泛滥,副作用大,容易反弹,以及市场上对减肥药不可或缺的需求为天然减肥药、中草药等的迅猛发展提供了一定的平台。大部分天然减肥药,中草药减肥活性成分不明确,药理机制不清楚等,是其走向世界的瓶颈,故本文对天然产物、中草药减肥降脂活性成分的作用机理、分类以及分子水平研究动态作系统综述并对其快速发展提出建议。     

Distribution patterns and industry planning of commonly used traditional Chinese medicinal plants in China

Medicinal plants are the primary material basis for disease prevention and treatment in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). The conservation and sustainable utilization of these medicinal plants is critical for the development of the TCM industry. However, wild medicinal plant resources have sharply declined in recent decades. To ameliorate the shortage of medicinal plant resources, it is essential to explore the development potential of the TCM industry in different geographical regions. For this purpose, we examined the spatial distribution of commonly used medicinal plants in China, the number of Chinese medicinal material markets, and the number of TCM decoction piece enterprises. Specifically, multispecies superimposition analysis and Thiessen polygons were used to reveal the optimal range for planting bulk medicinal plants and the ideal regions for building Chinese medicinal material markets, respectively. Furthermore, we quantitatively analyzed mismatches between the spatial distribution of commonly used medicinal plant richness, Chinese medicinal material markets, and TCM decoction piece enterprises. We found that the areas suitable for growing commonly used medicinal plants in China were mainly distributed in Hengduan Mountain, Nanling Mountain, Wuling Mountain, and Daba Mountain areas. The Thiessen polygon network based on Chinese medicinal material market localities showed there are currently fewer markets in southwestern, northwestern, and northeastern China than in central and southern China. TCM decoction piece enterprises are concentrated in a few provinces, such as Hebei and Jiangxi. We found that the distribution of commonly used medicinal plants, Chinese medicinal material markets and TCM decoction piece enterprises are mismatched in Henan, Shaanxi, Hunan, Hubei, Zhejiang, Fujian, Chongqing, and Xizang. We recommend strengthening development of the TCM industry in Henan, Hunan, Zhejiang, Shaanxi, Hubei, Chongqing, Fujian, and Xizang; building more Chinese medicinal material markets in southwestern, northwestern, and northeastern China; and establishing medicinal plant nurseries in resource-rich provinces to better protect and domesticate local medicinal plants.     

Mood and anxiety disorders in women with PCOS

Women with polycystic ovary syndrome have gynecologic, reproductive and metabolic co-morbidities that span their entire lifespan. More recently a higher risk of mood and anxiety disorders has been reported in women with PCOS. Women with PCOS have higher depression scores and a higher risk of depression independent of BMI. Although clinical features of hyperandrogenism affect health related quality of life, the association between hirsutism, acne, body image and depression is currently unclear. Similarly there is limited data on the association between variables such as biochemical hyperandrogenism or infertility and depression. Women with PCOS are also at risk for symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder. There is insufficient data examining the risk of other anxiety disorders such as social phobia, obsessive compulsive disorders and panic disorder. In a number of patients some of these disorders coexist increasing the health burden. These data underscore the need to screen all women with PCOS for mood and anxiety disorders and adequately treat women who are diagnosed with these conditions.     

Prevalence of Clinical Anxiety,Clinical Depression and Associated Risk Factors in Chinese Young and Middle-Aged Patients with Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head

Objective

To investigate the prevalence of clinical anxiety and clinical depression in Chinese young and mid-aged patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) and to analyze their potential risk factors.

Methods

Two hundred and sixteen Chinese patients with ONFH were consecutively enrolled in this cross-sectional study from January 2010 to December 2010. The Zung self-rating anxiety scale (SAS) and the Zung self-rating depression scale (SDS) were used to assess the prevalence of clinical anxiety and clinical depression. An additional questionnaire containing seventeen items of potential risk factors was completed by all patients. Binary logistic regression analysis was employed to reveal potential risk factors of anxiety and depression.

Results

The prevalence of clinical anxiety and clinical depression was 20.4% and 21.8% in Chinese young and middle-aged patients with ONFH, respectively. Binary regression analysis showed that independent risk factors correlated with high incidence of clinical anxiety included involved femoral head (OR = 3.168, 95% CI: 1.496 - 6.708) and stages of ONFH (OR_{IV-V / II} = 5.383, 95% CI: 1.664-17.416). Independent risk factors correlated with high incidence of depression included gender (OR = 2.853, 95% CI: 1.467-5.778), comorbid diseases (OR = 4.243, 95% CI: 1.940-9.278) and stages of the disease (OR _IV-V/II = 16.963, 95% CI: 4.404-65.331).

Conclusions

Patients with bilateral ONFH are inclined to have clinical anxiety, while female patients and patients with comorbid diseases might tend to get clinical depression. Advanced stages of ONFH are independent risk factors for both clinical anxiety and clinical depression.