Standardised TCM Terminology and its meaning

[Guest guest]

Hi All, & Hi Rey,

 

Rey wrote:

> 'Damp heteropathy' is my translation of the Chinese term 'Shi Xie'

> (I borrowed the English word 'heteropathy' from Chao Y'uan Ling's

> Phd Dissertation Medicine and Soceity in Late Imperial China: A

> Study of Physicians in Suzhou, l995,University of California).I

> translated 'shi' into dampness.The term 'dampness' as used in the

> article that I translated does not refer to a 'condition' but to

> what we refer to often in the West as 'pathogen' , or

> 'heteropathy' or in Chinese 'xie' which is the opposite number of

> 'zheng' which I translate as 'medicatrix naturae' or 'body immune

> resistance. The use of cold or cooling materia media according to

> the article translated is to prevent this 'xie' or heteropahty or

> pathogen to be'trapped' or 'harbored' inside. But the main

> 'heteropathy' in terms of SARS is the 'Warm Pestilential Qi' which

> is a 'hot' pathogen or heteropathy. And to dispel it the use of

> cooling materia medica is also necessary. Hence , the way I see

> it, the use of cooling or cold materia medica in relation of a

> real SARS patient will depend upon the clinical pattern this

> specific contingent patient. Regards, Rey Tiquia

 

I have great difficulty with the plethora of terms used in textbooks

and WWW for concepts that are similar but not-exactly-the-same.

 

For example would experts regards the following terms as identical

as regards the main classifications of herbs?:

 

1. Cool Heat, Clear Heat, Dispel Heat, Expel Heat, Antifebrile,

Antipyretic, Cooling Herbs? The problem for me is that there may

be several Chinese terms (not just qing re) which are not exactly

identical in their meaning and clinical usage.

 

2. Expel Damp, Aid Water/Drain Damp, Diuretic, Expel Water,

Dispel Water?

 

3. Expel Wind, Dispel Wind, Calm Wind ...?

 

4. Rectify Qi, Regulate Qi, Downbear Uprising Qi, Upbear Sinking

Qi?

 

5. Clear Phlegm, Resolve Phlegm, Expel Phlegm, Expectorant?

 

6. Build Yin, Replenish Yin, Boost Yin, Strengthen Yin, Tonify Yin?

 

7. Transform Decomposition, Expel Sepsis, Discharge Pus?

 

8. Nourish HT, Build HT, Tonify HT?

 

9. Calm Shen, Sedative, Ease Mind, Sedate Spirit?

 

In an effort to reduce typing and save space on my hard drive, I

have shortened many TCM terms and tried to standardise them.

 

For example, before I start to turn a captured text file into tabulated

fields in an MS Word file, I use the Find & Replace function to

eliminate all uses of the word " the " from a file. I convert the main

organ names (lung, large intestine, stomach, spleen, ... etc into

their 2-alpha codes (LU, LI, ST, SP, etc). I convert " and " , " with "

and " without " to & , w and wo; etc.

 

I use LU Xu to mean Fei Xu (deficiency of lung, lung deficiency,

lung depletion, emptiness of LU); LV Shi = liver excess, liver

repletion/fullness, overactivity of liver, etc.

 

I use EPF for External Pathogenic Factor (Xie or " Heteropathy " in

Rey's translation). Dampness is shortened to Damp, i.e. Damp

EPF, Cold EPF, etc.

 

The problem with " my system " is that it is personal and was

written by a fumbling student who does not have the in-depth

knowledge of the subtelties of Chinese concepts of most on this

List.

 

IMO, we need a standardised system of nomenclature and agreed

meanings that is suitable for database construction.

 

Best regards,

 

 

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[Guest guest]

This is one of the arguments for the adaptation of Wiseman terminology.

I was holding off on saying anything for fear of redundancy.

 

There is an article by Bob Flaws ( " Computers and Terminology " ) on the

Paradigm www.paradigm-pubs.com website that argues for a standardized

terminology for just these reasons, database construction and computer

research protocols.

 

 

On Tuesday, May 13, 2003, at 08:07 AM, wrote:

 

> IMO, we need a standardised system of nomenclature and agreed

> meanings that is suitable for database construction.