Current Status，Strategies and Prospects of Traditional Chinese Medicine Diagnosis and Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Yandong WEN; Zhi YANG; Shaogang HUANG; Zhongyu LI; Xiangxue MA; Qing XU; Liqing DU; Bochao YUAN; Yibing TIAN; Wentong GE; Xiaofan ZHAO; Chang LIU; Xudong TANG

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Current Status，Strategies and Prospects of Traditional Chinese Medicine Diagnosis and Treatment for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

VernacularTitle:肠易激综合征的中医诊疗现状、策略与展望
Author: Yandong WEN ¹ ; Zhi YANG ² ; Shaogang HUANG ³ ; Zhongyu LI ¹ ; Xiangxue MA ³ ; Qing XU ¹ ; Liqing DU ³ ; Bochao YUAN ¹ ; Yibing TIAN ¹ ; Wentong GE ² ; Xiaofan ZHAO ² ; Chang LIU ² ; Xudong TANG ²
Author Information

1. Eye Hospital，China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences，Beijing，100040
2. Institute of Spleen and Stomach Diseases，Xiyuan Hospital，China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences
3. The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine
Publication Type:Journal Article
Keywords: irritable bowel syndrome; spleen-stomach diseases; traditional Chinese medicine therapy; diagnosis and treatment strategies; literature review
From: Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2026;67(4):404-409
CountryChina
Language:Chinese
Abstract: Irritable bowel syndrome （IBS） is a functional bowel disorder characterized primarily by abdominal pain and altered defecation habits. In recent years， traditional Chinese medicine （TCM） has made progress in multiple aspects of IBS research and treatment， including syndrome distribution， development of TCM formulas， clinical efficacy evaluation， external therapies， and psychosocial regulation. However， it still faces challenges such as over-reliance on symptomatic manifestations rather than biomarkers for diagnostic criteria， and the lack of high-quality evidence-based data supporting the efficacy of TCM formulas in treating IBS. This paper proposed that TCM diagnosis and treatment of IBS should adhere to the strategy of integrating the holistic concept with syndrome differentiation and treatment， combining TCM external therapies such as acupuncture， moxibustion and acupoint application）， and emphasizing individualized diagnosis and treatment for psychosomatic abnormalities. Future research should integrate multi-omics technologies， artificial intelligence and other methods to deepen the understanding of the pathogenesis of IBS and the mechanisms of TCM formulas， so as to promote the standardization and internationalization of TCM in the diagnosis and treatment of IBS.