Bloodletting therapy, as its name implies, is a medical method to achieve the therapeutic effect of diseases by draining blood from specific parts of patients. Compared with other treatments, it is unique in both China and the West. Bloodletting therapy occupies an important position in the history of traditional Chinese medicine and western medicine.
Bloodletting Therapy for Attacking Pathogenic Factors and
In the East, the Chinese medicine classics < < Huangdi Neijing > > record [the blood vessels of the small collaterals are pricked] [the blood vessels of the small collaterals are removed when the age is long, Out of evil blood also], It is believed that puncturing collaterals and bloodletting can treat madness, headache, sudden acupuncture, asthma, epistaxis and other diseases. It is the best way to attack pathogenic factors. Traditional Chinese medicine in all dynasties has used it to promote blood circulation and regulate qi. The heat and poison that leaked out and accumulated inside. In the west, Hippocrates, the father of medicine, believed that diseases were caused by the imbalance of body fluids. Bloodletting is the same as sweating and vomiting. They are all methods of balancing body fluids. Galen, a famous Roman doctor, established a complicated bloodletting therapy on this basis. The impact is far-reaching, That in the Middle Ages, Bloodletting has become a routine therapy for all diseases and health care in the European continent. When it comes to the differences between eastern and western civilizations, It must also be said that it is oriental fine. Traditional Chinese medicine uses acupuncture at specific positions. Release a small amount of dark red or black [evil blood] [until blood changes], There are relatively strict procedures and standards for operation, and there is a certain technical threshold. However, ancient western medicine opened the blood vessels. The more serious the disease was, the more it was put. The real one was the hand-on knife, the blood flowed into a river, and the scene was extremely bloody. Because the operation was simple and convenient, even the important task of the main knife was transferred to the barber by doctors and monks, and leeches were also used for the [high-end] point.
Modern Western Medicine Abandons Bloodletting Therapy
In modern times, New changes have taken place in the differences between the East and the West. Traditional Chinese medicine continues to stick to the golden rule of its predecessors, Yun Zhuan Yao Zhang. In the west, With the establishment and improvement of basic medical disciplines such as anatomy, physiology, pathology and microbiology, The theoretical foundation of bloodletting therapies such as [body fluid balance] has been shaken, Doctors began to reflect and review the so-called “natural” universal therapy. In 1799, The first president of the United States, Without timely and effective treatment, Instead, the doctor released at least half of the blood volume according to the current view, Until death. Similar clinical lessons have greatly increased people’s doubts and uneasiness about bloodletting therapy. More doctors with scientific thinking have expanded their focus from individual cases to groups. In the early 19th century, Alexander Hamilton, a Scottish military physician, undertook the first prospective clinical controlled study, It was found that the death toll of the sick soldiers who received bloodletting treatment was much higher than that of the non-bloodletting group. The contemporary French doctor Pierre Louis, through 7 years of clinical observation of a large number of patients, also came to the conclusion that bloodletting therapy had no definite curative effect. The renewal of theory and the summary of practice finally made bloodletting therapy abandoned by mainstream medicine.
Are we going to bleed today?
Today, even from the perspective of modern medicine, Bloodletting therapy has not completely withdrawn from the stage of history, It is also applied to the treatment of a few diseases such as polycythemia vera and hemochromatosis. The former is due to abnormal proliferation of bone marrow. The number of erythrocytes increased significantly, Since there is no effective treatment method to inhibit excessive hematopoiesis of bone marrow, Only through bloodletting can excessive red blood cells be reduced, However, more and more red blood cells have been collected instead of whole blood. Hemochromatosis is caused by iron metabolism disorder. Excessive iron is stored in the body, causing tissue and organ diseases. For such patients, In addition to minimizing iron intake and using iron chelating agents, Moderate bloodletting through direct vein is also a method to rapidly improve the disease condition. Compared with modern medicine based on scientific theories and evidence-based evidence, Traditional Chinese medicine is somewhat conformist and lacks innovation in the concept of bloodletting treatment. The concepts of yin and yang, vein and acupuncture points are certainly unable to go abroad and win the trust of the world. Some Chinese medicine has tried [Western learning has spread to the East], Declare bloodletting [not only as simple as releasing blood stasis or poisonous blood, It also stimulates the blood vessel wall, And the vascular wall is rich in nerves, Endocrine cells are also distributed in some parts, Therefore, stimulating blood vessels may also regulate the nervous and endocrine systems. This is actually to use the cloak of Western medicine to make its own packaging. Without convincing theoretical basis, It is impossible to justify oneself. In countless therapeutic practices in history, People can indeed see that bloodletting therapy has played a role in improving some symptoms. However, this needs to eliminate various possibilities such as self-healing of diseases and psychological suggestion. Its mechanism and function are worth further study, It is not a scientific attitude to blindly deny. It should be stressed that [Bloodletting] After all, it’s invasive, There are potential risks such as inducing thrombosis, increasing infection and excessive blood loss. In the absence of necessary supervision, It is easy to be blindly abused by some [Jianghu doctors] and informal medical institutions. There have been cases reported: A patient received multiple bloodletting therapies at a [famous traditional Chinese medicine] place due to varicose veins of the lower limbs. Because the pressure on the varicose veins will be relieved temporarily after bloodletting, At that time, the symptoms naturally eased, But the blood circulation will soon refill, It is impossible to fundamentally solve practical problems. However, repeated bloodletting operations lead to serious subcutaneous inflammation and extensive adhesion. Finally, it brings great difficulties to the operation. In the current scientific understanding system, Chinese and Western medicine are difficult to reconcile and adapt, but at least they can coexist and develop according to their followers. Practitioners and fans of traditional Chinese medicine should be more alert to those pseudo-traditional Chinese medicine who actually tarnish the reputation of traditional Chinese medicine under the banner of traditional Chinese medicine. They are the most dangerous enemies of traditional Chinese medicine.