Chinese medicine: from rural hospitals to top three hospitals in Kyoto

Director Zhao was taken aback by Chen Yang's question.

"Of course, it's for..."

Before Director Zhao could finish speaking, Chen Yang continued, "Western medicine is already quite advanced, with a large number of Western medicine doctors nationwide. Medical facilities and systems from the grassroots to the higher levels are quite comprehensive. If we only train a large number of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners who are highly compatible with Western medicine, then what is the point?"

Director Zhao: "......"

Chen Yang continued, "The reason I emphasize 'breakthrough in thinking' and 'precise dialectics' is not to deny the importance of standardization and promotion."

"On the contrary, I believe that only by enabling a group of people to break through the boundaries of cognition through in-depth thinking and clinical practice, and to grasp the essence and laws of diseases more profoundly and accurately, can we lay a solid foundation for truly scientific and efficient 'standardization' and 'promotion' in the future!"

"It's like a climber who must first strive to reach the summit in order to see a wider world and to draw a more accurate map for those who follow."

"What we are doing now is the process of striving to climb. This process may seem 'elitist,' but its ultimate goal is to benefit more people!"

"and,"

Chen Yang added, "We are also actively exploring this."

"For example, we can use modern information technology to build an auxiliary decision-making system for TCM diagnosis, and make the diagnostic thinking of famous doctors more logical and data-driven; for example, we can strengthen standardized training to cultivate more young TCM doctors with solid skills and critical thinking ability."

"The road is winding, but the direction is correct. We cannot give up the pursuit of higher efficacy or the exploration of medical truth just because of the difficulty in promotion."

Chen Yang's answer was both insightful and down-to-earth, acknowledging the difficulties while pointing out the direction, which won even more enthusiastic applause from the audience.

Director Zhao pondered for a moment, nodded slightly, and sat down. Although he wasn't entirely convinced, Chen Yang's vision and way of thinking had clearly touched him.

As the Q&A session drew to a close, the atmosphere remained lively.

Just then, a staff member rushed onto the stage and whispered a few words in the host's ear.

The host looked surprised and embarrassed, then turned to Chen Yang and Wu Yongping.

Wu Yongping took the microphone and said in a deep voice, "Director Chen, colleagues, we have just received an emergency call."

"A retired professor from our school, who is quite old and has a history of multiple chronic illnesses, suddenly fell ill this morning. His family brought him to the school clinic, but his condition is not optimistic. The doctors at the clinic found the initial treatment challenging... I don't know..."

Wu Yongping didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear: he was asking Chen Yang if he was willing to provide on-site treatment.

An uproar immediately erupted in the auditorium.

This was an unplanned step, and the patient was a retired professor from our university, with a special status, an unknown condition, and extremely high risks!

Everyone's eyes were focused on Chen Yang.

Zhuang Qiwen and the others felt a chill run down their spines. This was all happening under the watchful eyes of over two thousand people; what if…

Chen Yang nodded calmly without hesitation: "Since we've met, it must be fate. Please invite the old professor up; we'll do our best."

A hint of gratitude and admiration flashed in Wu Yongping's eyes, and he immediately made the arrangements.

Soon, an elderly man in a wheelchair, with white hair and beard, a sallow complexion, and a listless demeanor, was pushed forward, accompanied by several anxious family members.

A doctor from the school clinic gave a brief report on the situation: The elderly man's surname was Zhou, he was 83 years old, and he had a long history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, and hypertension.

This morning I felt worse, with chest tightness and shortness of breath, dizziness, nausea, weakness, and cold sweat.

The medical staff found that the elderly patient's blood pressure was low, heart rate was fast, and blood oxygen saturation was slightly decreased. Considering the patient's advanced age, frailty, and multiple underlying conditions, they were hesitant to administer medication and thus reported the incident urgently.

The auditorium was completely silent; everyone held their breath.

Chen Yang walked steadily to the old man, bowed slightly, and said gently, "Old Zhou, don't worry, let me take a look at you."

Chen Yang first observed the old man's complexion and expression, and then began to carefully ask questions in a soft voice.

"Mr. Zhou, do you feel tightness or pain in your chest?"

Is the dizziness a spinning sensation or just a feeling of lightheadedness?

"Do you feel nauseous and want to vomit? Does your mouth taste bitter?"

Are your hands and feet cold or do you feel warm?

……

Although the old man was weak, he answered intermittently under Chen Yang's gentle guidance.

Next, Chen Yang carefully examined the old man's tongue—the tongue was pale, swollen, and purplish-dark, with a thick, greasy, and slippery white coating.

Then, Chen Yang focused his mind and took the old man's pulse.

Chen Yang gently placed his fingers on the old man's wrist, his eyes slightly closed, as if he were concentrating all his energy on his fingertips to sense every beat of the pulse.

Time passed slowly, and the auditorium was so quiet you could hear a pin drop, with only the old man's slightly rapid breathing and Chen Yang's steady demeanor.

Zhuang Qiwen, Yu Shiyun, and the others watched Chen Yang nervously. They believed in Chen Yang's medical skills, but at this moment, their palms couldn't help but sweat.

Cheng Yi also watched intently, wanting to see for himself the strength of this "Yang God" in a real emergency.

After a long while, Chen Yang slowly opened his eyes and released his grip. His brows were slightly furrowed, as if he were deep in thought.

Chen Yang turned to the family members and the doctor in the medical room and asked, "Is Old Zhou usually more sensitive to cold or heat? How are his diet and bowel movements?"

The family quickly replied, "My father has always been very sensitive to cold, and he rarely uses a fan even in the summer. He has little appetite and gets bloated after eating just a little. He urinates very little, and his urine is very pale. His stools are often loose, sticky, and difficult to flush clean."

Chen Yang nodded, his gaze sweeping over the old man's tongue again, and he understood.

Then Chen Yang walked to the front of the stage, faced the audience, and calmly began to speak. His voice was transmitted throughout the auditorium through the microphone.

"Everyone, regarding Mr. Zhou's condition, the Western medical diagnosis is clear: it is an acute exacerbation of multiple chronic underlying diseases."

"From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, this is a critical condition of deficiency of Yin and Yang with water overflow, combined with internal cold and dampness trapping the Taiyin, and the floating of deficient Yang!"

A slight commotion arose in the audience.

Lesser Yin, Greater Yin, Yang deficiency with water overflow, internal cold and dampness, and floating of deficient Yang... These terms combined together paint an extremely complex and critical picture of the pathogenesis.

Chen Yang analyzed in detail:

"The patient is elderly and has been ill for a long time, resulting in a deficiency of primordial yang, which is undoubtedly a deficiency of yin and yang in the Shaoyin meridian. The yang deficiency cannot control water, so water and dampness accumulate internally, which then ascends to the heart and lungs, causing chest tightness and shortness of breath; the water and dampness obstruct the spleen earth in the middle jiao, causing poor appetite, abdominal distension, and loose, sticky stools; the yang deficiency cannot warm the limbs, so the patient is afraid of cold and has cold limbs."

"However, his tongue is pale and swollen with a purplish-dark color, which is a sign of yang deficiency and cold stagnation, and poor blood circulation; the white, thick, greasy, and slippery tongue coating is a clear indication of internal cold and dampness."

"The dizziness, nausea, and cold sweats that are currently occurring are not simply caused by pathogenic factors, but rather are manifestations of deficient yang rising excessively!"

"When the yang energy declines to a certain extent, it cannot be contained within and instead floats outward and dissipates, resulting in critical symptoms such as low blood pressure, rapid heart rate, and decreased blood oxygen levels. This is a case of true cold with false heat, where yin reaches its extreme but appears as yang!"

"The key to the pathogenesis lies in the following: Yang deficiency with water retention is the root cause, cold-dampness stagnation is the manifestation, and the floating of deficient Yang is the urgent cause!"

Chen Yang's diagnosis was like peeling back layers of an onion, clearly dissecting the elderly man's complex and critical condition with distinct layers.

"At this point, if sweating and a rapid pulse are observed, and heat-clearing or yin-nourishing methods are mistakenly used, it will undoubtedly worsen the situation. If only warming yang and promoting diuresis are used, the medicinal effect may be insufficient to reverse the floating and deficient yang. It is necessary to warm and tonify the original yang, calm the floating yang, resolve phlegm and promote diuresis, and at the same time invigorate blood and unblock yang!"

After speaking, Chen Yang directly dictated the prescription, which the staff quickly recorded and projected onto the large screen.