1.Reconsideraton of Stroke with Syndrome of Combined Blood Stasis and Toxin from the Perspective of Xiang Thinking
Yunfan ZHANG ; Di ZHAO ; Lina MIAO ; Hongxi LIU ; Jingjing WEI ; Xiao LIANG ; Liuding WANG ; Xueru ZHANG ; Yunmeng CHEN ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;66(13):1305-1310
Xiang thinking is a cognitive approach that reflects the relationships between phenomena and their underlying principles by analyzing their external manifestations through methods such as analogy, reasoning, deduction, and symbolism. This article applied xiang thinking to analyze the etiology and pathogenesis of "wind, fire, phlegm, and blood stasis" in stroke, thereby exploring its impact on the principles of syndrome differentiation and treatment of this condition. Meanwhile, the article traced the construction process of xiang thinking, and interpreted the concept of "toxin pathogen" in traditional Chinese medicine from four perspectives, state, attribute, origin, and law. Furthermore, the relationship between the process of constructing xiang thinking and the origin of etiology, identification methods, pathogenesis evolution, and treatment strategies for stroke with syndrome of combined blood stasis and toxin was explored, so as to provide insights into research on the etiology and pathogenesis of stroke, as well as clinical diagnosis and treatment approaches.
2.Exploring the differentiation and treatment of apoplexy based on"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu":a perspective from"six fu viscera-xuanfu-collaterals"
Di ZHAO ; Xiao LIANG ; Jingjing WEI ; Lina MIAO ; Yunfan ZHANG ; Hongxi LIU ; Yue LIU ; Liuding WANG ; Qi ZHANG ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;48(5):690-695
The incidence of apoplexy remains persistently high among the older population.Based on the traditional Chinese medicine principle of"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu",this paper explores the holistic connotation of"fu".It proposes that the onset of apoplexy in the elderly is characterized by obstruction,stagnation,depression,and sluggishness,which should be treated from six fu viscera,xuanfu,and collaterals.The interconnected hierarchical network of these three systems,serving as macro-and micro-channels for qi and fluid metabolism,plays a central role in both disease development and treatment.The failure of the six fu viscera to descend and the upward invasion of turbid yin are identified as prerequisites for apoplexy onset,whereas yang qi stagnation and xuanfu blockage act as key pathogenic drivers,and the core mechanisms involve phlegm-stasis-toxin accumulation,and dysfunction of the collaterals and fu.In the treatment,acute phase requires unblocking fu viscera and restoring xuanfu patency;chronic phase focuses on dredging collaterals and opening xuanfu;and recovery phase emphasizes tonifying combined with regulating xuanfu.The understanding of"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu"emphasizes that the pathogenesis of the disease should be changed to individual conditions;"six fu viscera-xuanfu-collaterals"exhibits a pathological mechanism characterized by the transmission and reception of pathogenic factors,as well as progressive mutual involvement;in clinical practice,treatment should meticulously assess the severity and nuances of the condition,prioritizing method that emphasizes unobstructed flow;additionally,therapy should be essential to protect stomach qi and integrate therapeutic attacks within a framework of supplementation.These principles offer valuable reference for the differentiation and treatment of apoplexy.
3.Exploring the differentiation and treatment of apoplexy based on"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu":a perspective from"six fu viscera-xuanfu-collaterals"
Di ZHAO ; Xiao LIANG ; Jingjing WEI ; Lina MIAO ; Yunfan ZHANG ; Hongxi LIU ; Yue LIU ; Liuding WANG ; Qi ZHANG ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Beijing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2025;48(5):690-695
The incidence of apoplexy remains persistently high among the older population.Based on the traditional Chinese medicine principle of"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu",this paper explores the holistic connotation of"fu".It proposes that the onset of apoplexy in the elderly is characterized by obstruction,stagnation,depression,and sluggishness,which should be treated from six fu viscera,xuanfu,and collaterals.The interconnected hierarchical network of these three systems,serving as macro-and micro-channels for qi and fluid metabolism,plays a central role in both disease development and treatment.The failure of the six fu viscera to descend and the upward invasion of turbid yin are identified as prerequisites for apoplexy onset,whereas yang qi stagnation and xuanfu blockage act as key pathogenic drivers,and the core mechanisms involve phlegm-stasis-toxin accumulation,and dysfunction of the collaterals and fu.In the treatment,acute phase requires unblocking fu viscera and restoring xuanfu patency;chronic phase focuses on dredging collaterals and opening xuanfu;and recovery phase emphasizes tonifying combined with regulating xuanfu.The understanding of"treating the elderly by focusing on the fu"emphasizes that the pathogenesis of the disease should be changed to individual conditions;"six fu viscera-xuanfu-collaterals"exhibits a pathological mechanism characterized by the transmission and reception of pathogenic factors,as well as progressive mutual involvement;in clinical practice,treatment should meticulously assess the severity and nuances of the condition,prioritizing method that emphasizes unobstructed flow;additionally,therapy should be essential to protect stomach qi and integrate therapeutic attacks within a framework of supplementation.These principles offer valuable reference for the differentiation and treatment of apoplexy.
4.Clinicopathological features of breast cancer with HER2 low expression: a real-world retrospective study
Kaimi LI ; Shafei WU ; Mingchen SUN ; Hongxi ZHANG ; Xinyi TENG ; Yuanyuan LIU ; Zhiyong LIANG ; Xuan ZENG
Chinese Journal of Pathology 2024;53(7):691-696
Objective:To investigate the clinical and pathological characteristics of breast cancer with HER2 low expression.Methods:The data from 3 422 patients with invasive breast cancer which archived in Peking Union Medical College Hospital between April 2019 and July 2022 were retrospectively reviewed. Among them, 136 patients were treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The tumor size, histological type, tumor differentiation, lymph node metastasis, Ki-67 index, the status of estrogen receptor, progesterone receptor and HER2 as well as pathological complete response (pCR) rate were collected.Results:The HER2 status of 3 286 patients without neoadjuvant therapy, 616 (616/3 286, 18.7%) score 0, 1 047 (1 047/3 286, 31.9%) score 1+, 1 099 (1 099/3 286,33.4%) score 2+ and 524 (524/3 286,15.9%) score 3+ by immunohistochemistry (IHC). Among the 1 070 IHC 2+ cases, 161 were classified as HER2 positive by reflex fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) assay. In our cohort, 1 956 cases of HER2-low (IHC 1+ and IHC 2+/FISH-) breast cancer were identified. Compared to the HER2 IHC 0 group, HER2-low tumors more frequently occurred in patients with hormone receptor (HR) positive ( P<0.001), Ki-67 index below 35% ( P<0.001), well or moderate differentiation ( P<0.001) and over the age of 50 ( P=0.008). However, there were no significant differences in histological type, tumor size, and lymph node metastasis between HER2-low and HER2 IHC 0 group. For patients who had neoadjuvant therapy, the pCR rate in the patients with HER2-low was lower than those with HER2 IHC 0 (13.3%, 23.9%), but there was no significant difference. Although HER2-low breast cancers showed a slightly lower pCR rate than HER2 IHC 0 tumors, no remarkable difference was observed between tumors with HER2-low and HER2 IHC 0 regardless of hormone receptor status. Conclusions:The clinicopathological features of HER2-low breast cancers are different from those with HER2 IHC 0. It is necessary to accurately distinguish HER2-low breast cancer from HER2 IHC 0 and to reveal whether HER2-low tumor is a distinct biological entity.
5.Study on Zhang Yunling's Medication Law in Treating Headache Based on Data Mining
Hongxi LIU ; Xiao LIANG ; Jingzi SHI ; Jingjing WEI ; Wei SHEN ; Guojing FU ; Yue LIU ; Liuding WANG ; Yunling ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Information on Traditional Chinese Medicine 2024;31(1):59-64
Objective To study the medication law of Professor Zhang Yunling in the treatment of headache based on data mining technology;To provide ideas for the clinical treatment of headache.Methods Professor Zhang Yunling's outpatient TCM prescription data for the treatment of headache from Sep.2017 to Dec.2020 were collected,and the Ancient and Modern Medical Record Cloud Platform 2.3.5 was used to mine the selected TCM prescriptions for herbal medicine frequency statistics,property,taste and meridian tropism statistics,herbal medicine efficacy statistics,correlation analysis,clustering analysis,complex network analysis,etc.Results Through collection and screening,totally 332 prescriptions were included,involving 178 kinds of Chinese materia medica,with a total frequency of 5 380 times.The top 10 kinds of Chinese materia medica were Chuanxiaong Rhizoma,Paeoniae Radix alba,Atractyodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma,Testudinis Carapax et Plastrum,Bambusae Caulis in Taenia,Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma,Astragali Radix,Amomi Fructus Rotundus,Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum,and Polygalae Radix.They were mainly warm,mild and slightly cold in properties,sweet,pungent and bitter in tastes,and liver,lung,spleen meridian in meridian tropism.In the statistics of herbal medicine efficacy,expelling wind and relieving pain,suppressing liver yang,promoting blood circulation and qi,clearing heart and relieving restlessness,clearing heat and detoxifying,softening liver and relieving pain were used more frequently.The combinations in herbal medicines association included"Atractyodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma-Chuanxiaong Rhizoma","Testudinis Carapax et Plastrum-Paeoniae Radix alba","Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma-Paeoniae Radix alba","Testudinis Carapax et Plastrum-Chuanxiaong Rhizoma","Bambusae Caulis in Taenia-Chuanxiaong Rhizoma".Herbal medicines clustering clustered 32 kinds of high-frequency herbal medicines used more than 60 times into 6 categories.Complex network analysis screened out the core formula for the treatment of headache:Chuanxiaong Rhizoma,Paeoniae Radix alba,Atractyodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma,Bambusae Caulis in Taenia,Pinelliae Rhizoma Praeparatum,Testudinis Carapax et Plastrum,Astragali Radix,Amomi Fructus Rotundus,and Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma.Conclusion In the treatment of headache,Professor Zhang Yunling holds that the pathogenesis of headache is deficiency in origin and excess in superficiality,deficiency of qi and blood,loss of nourishment of brain collaterals,stagnation of phlegm and dampness,disturbance of wind pathogen,obstruction of brain collaterals,and the location of the disease is related to the five viscera and involves the stomach.Focuses on tonifying deficiency and reducing excess,treats exterior and interior separately,and gives consideration to both the symptoms and the root causes,which often uses drugs to treat headache,such as dispelling wind and relieving pain,promoting blood circulation and relieving pain,relieving spasm and relieving pains,eliminating phlegm and dampness,invigorating qi and spleen,nourishing blood and yin,eliminating dampness and regulating stomach,relieving depression and restlessness,which can provide some reference for the clinical treatment of headache.
6.Exploring the Disease Mechanism and Treatment of Ischemic Stroke Based on Ascending and Descending of Qi Movement from the Perspective of Xiang Thinking
Liuding WANG ; Xiao LIANG ; Yifan CHEN ; Yue LIU ; Hongxi LIU ; Di ZHAO ; Yunfan ZHANG ; Yunmeng CHEN ; Xueru ZHANG ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2024;65(14):1443-1448
Xiang thinking is the key way of thinking to construct the life model of human body in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), and the theory of ascending and descending of qi movement is an important manifestation of xiang thinking in the theory of TCM. Based on the theory of qi movement, this paper interpreted the mechanism of ischemic stroke through the perspective of xiang thinking "earth weakness - wood constraint - fire hyperactivity", as "earth weakness in the central and dampness accumulated to phlegm" "wood constraint and stirring wind led to blood stasis" and "fire hyperactivity and fire toxin showed flaming upward" due to disorder of qi movement. Combined with the "xiang of medicinal properties and therapy methods" to discuss the treatment and prescriptions of ischaemic stroke, applying wind medicinals to elevate ji-earth (己土) and yi-wood (乙木), so that phlegm and stasis can be eliminated, and cold medicinals to descend jia-wood (甲木) and wu-earth (戊土) so that fire toxin can be cleared, with a view to restore ascending and descending of qi movement for ischaemic stroke.
7.Herbal Textural Research on Treatment of Headache Based on Syndrome Differentiation
Hongxi LIU ; Mengying LU ; Xiao LIANG ; Xiansu CHI ; Jingjing WEI ; Yue LIU ; Liuding WANG ; Yunling ZHANG
Chinese Journal of Experimental Traditional Medical Formulae 2023;29(22):155-162
ObjectiveTo summarize the thinking of treatment of headache based on syndrome differentiation by reviewing the literature of materia medica in the past dynasties, so as to guide the clinical practice. MethodAll the literature of materia medica in the Chinese Medical Dictionary, involving 76 works from Han to Qing Dynasties, were searched, and the information of the herbs for treating headache was extracted. According to Chinese Materia Medica (11th Edition) and Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China (2020 Edition), the nature, taste, and meridian tropism of the selected herbs were statistically analyzed, and the syndrome elements of headache were classified and counted. In addition, the contents of syndrome differentiation and treatment of headache by different herbs were extracted. ResultFrom the 76 monographs of materia medica in the past dynasties, 114 herbs for treating headache were selected. The herbs mainly had cold or warm nature, pungent or bitter taste, and tropism to the lung and live meridians. The syndrome elements of headache treated by the herbs mainly included wind attack, fire disturbance, turbid obstruction, stagnation, cold coagulation, and healthy Qi deficiency. ConclusionHeadache is mainly treated with the herbs with the effects of dispelling pathogenic wind, clearing heat and purging fire, eliminating phlegm and resolving dampness, regulating Qi movement and activating blood, warming Yang and dispelling cold, and tonifying deficiency and reinforcing healthy Qi, and the herbs are often used in combinations. Headache is treated following the principles of dispelling wind and pathogen, regulating Qi and blood, and tonifying deficiency and purging excess, which is in line with the laws of obstruction and nutrient deficiency causing pain.
8.ZHANG Yunling's Experience in the Treatment of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis from Emphasis on both Spleen and Kidney
Liuding WANG ; Xueming FAN ; Wei SHEN ; Hongxi LIU ; Jingzi SHI ; Jingjing WEI ; Xiao LIANG ;
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2023;64(20):2067-2070
This paper summarized Professor ZHANG Yunling's experience in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) from emphasis on both spleen and kidney. It is considered that the characteristic of ALS manifested as overlap of atrophy-flaccidity disease and convulsive disease, and the core pathogenesis are the deficiency of spleen and kidney and the inner pathogenic qi. ZHANG advocated that ALS should be treated from tonifying both the spleen and kidney, as strong spleen and kidney led the latent pathogen at peace. Usually applied Huangqi (Astragalus mongholicus), Baizhu (Atractylodes macrocephala) combined with Taizishen (Pseudostellaria heterophylla), fried Yiyiren (Coix lacryma-jobi), Doukou (Myristica fragrans) and Sharen (Wurfbainia villosa) to tonify the middle and replenish qi, ascend lucidity and descend turbidity to invigorate the spleen; Roucongrong (Cistanche deserticola), Tusizi (Cuscuta chinensis) combined with Shanyao (Dioscorea oppositifolia), Shanzhuyu (Cornus officinalis) and prepared Dihuang (Rehmannia glutinosa) are used to support the fire and nourish the water, so as to replenish the spleen. The empirical formula regarded invigorateing the spleen and replenishing the kidney as the core therapeutic principle throughout the treatment of the whole process, which aimed at extinguishing inner wind and pacifying latent pathogen when treating the root.
9.Diagnosis and Treatment of Traditional Chinese Medicine for Encephalopathy Based on the Theory of “Identificating the Onset of Diseases”
Di ZHAO ; Zhenmin XU ; Xiao LIANG ; Hongxi LIU ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2023;64(22):2295-2299
Brain diseases in traditional Chinese medicine were complex and difficult to diagnosis and treatment, and new diagnostic and therapeutic ideas are urgently needed. The onset of the disease was the result of the struggle between healthy qi and pathogenic qi. Common types of the onset of diseases included sudden onset, slow onset, latent onset, secondary onset, and recurrent onset, reflecting the strength of the healthy qi and pathogenic qi, the pathogenic qi that reduced diseases, the site of onset, and other informatin. “Identificating the onset of diseases” was simple and easy to operate, and helped to clarify the complex development of encephalopathy. When applying it, we should first identify urgency and importance, focus on the characteristics; grasp the tendency of diseases, and know the overall situation of the disease; compare similarities and differences horizontally; and carefully observe and dynamically understand the disease. “Identificating the onset of diseases” has the characteristics of comprehensiveness and prognosis, and can lay the foundation for pattern identification and treatment and “treating disease before its onset”.
10.Clinical Application of Supplementing Essence and Boosting Marrow Method in the Treatment of Encephalopathy Based on the Marrow Sea Theory
Hongxi LIU ; Mengying LU ; Xiao LIANG ; Jingjing WEI ; Yue LIU ; Yunmeng CHEN ; Xiansu CHI ; Guojing FU ; Yunling ZHANG
Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine 2023;64(18):1877-1884
As the guiding theory for the diagnosis and treatment of encephalopathy in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), The marrow sea theory has important theoretical connotation and clinical value. This paper summarized the clinical research literature on the differentiation and treatment of common encephalopathy based on the marrow sea theory published in recent years, analyzed the treatment method and effects from eight aspects in terms of stroke, dizziness, insomnia, headache, constraint syndrome, dementia, tremor syndrome, and atrophy syndrome, and discussed the possible mechanism based on the relevant basic research. It is believed that marrow sea depletion is the common pathogenesis of encephalopathy in TCM. Guided by the method of supplementing essence and boosting marrow, the corresponding formulas and medicinals are recommended in accordance with differentiated syndromes, which can effectively improve the symptoms of the disease, delay the progression, increase the daily life ability of the patients, and improve the quality of life. Based on the marrow sea theory, the method of supplementing essence and boosting marrow, rectifying healthy qi and dispelling pathogen can be used to highlight the advantages of TCM and provide ideas for the diagnosis and treatment of encephalopathy in TCM.

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