stjorthotic Chapter 1078: Xun Jiahong's Growth
Chapter 1078: Xun Jiahong's Growth
Leaving Lawrence's ward, Mueller couldn't help but look back repeatedly. "The EF value has slowly increased from 26% to 29%, and the BNP has dropped from 2100 to 1800... Although the increase is small, it still maintains an upward trend after stopping the medication. This is almost 'counterintuitive' in Western medicine."
Before coming to Kyoto, Mueller and Robert thought that Lawrence's treatment this time would be similar to Wilson's before, with Chinese medicine conditioning and then surgery.
Pierce used to think so too.
Unexpectedly, after arriving in Kyoto, they discovered that this time Lawrence was using pure traditional Chinese medicine for treatment.
To be honest, pure TCM treatment and surgical treatment after TCM conditioning have completely different meanings in the eyes of foreign experts like Robert and Muller.
Whether it was Wilson’s previous treatment or Zhang Tiezhu’s later medical records, in the eyes of these foreign experts, they believed that Wilson and Zhang Tiezhu’s recovery was actually the result of Western medicine surgery, and Chinese medicine was only auxiliary.
But this time, Chen Yang actually used pure traditional Chinese medicine to treat Lawrence's illness, which shocked Muller and Robert.
Lawrence's condition is not simple. If such a disease can be cured only by relying on traditional Chinese medicine, then the importance of traditional Chinese medicine in their minds will be completely different.
"Director Chen, how do you control the dosage of alkaloid-containing herbs like aconite? Will they be toxic to the heart?" Robert asked Chen Yang.
Just as Chen Yang was about to speak, Xun Jiahong beside him smiled and said, "Professor Robert, regarding the issue of toxicity and dosage of traditional Chinese medicine, perhaps I can explain it with an actual case. Everyone, please follow me to the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine. There is a patient's treatment process there that may be able to answer your questions."
Everyone followed Xun Jiahong into the Traditional Chinese Medicine ward. The corridor lacked the humming of instruments common in Western medicine wards, but was filled with the aroma of traditional Chinese medicine, which made the group of foreign experts subconsciously frown.
Xun Jiahong led everyone into a ward. As soon as he entered, he smiled and greeted the patients in the ward: "Uncle Li, how are you feeling today? A guest came to see you."
"Director Xun!"
Sitting on the hospital bed was a white-haired old man, holding a grip ball in his hand and with a ruddy complexion.
There was an old lady sitting next to the bed. She stood up quickly and said, "He was just telling me to walk a few more steps today!"
The old lady then hurriedly greeted Chen Yang: "Director Chen."
"Bring some international experts to see Uncle Li." Chen Yang also smiled and nodded to the old lady.
"Professor Mueller, Professor Robert, let me introduce you..."
As he spoke, Xun Jiahong began to introduce the patient's condition to Muller and others.
The patient is named Li Jianguo, 68 years old. He has been diagnosed with diabetic nephropathy for 5 years. Half a year ago, he went to a tertiary hospital for treatment due to "creatinine 780mmol/L and urea nitrogen 28mmol/L". He was told that he could only rely on dialysis to maintain his condition. However, because he was worried about the side effects of dialysis, he came to Kyoto City Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.
Some time ago, he was transferred from Kyoto City Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital to the medical center, where Xun Jiahong was responsible for his treatment.
"Here are the patient's detailed medical records..."
Xun Jiahong handed the medical records to Mueller and Robert. "At the initial diagnosis, the patient had lower limb edema extending to the knees, was too weak to get out of bed, and had nausea and vomiting. The diagnosis was 'Qi and Yin deficiency, internal obstruction due to turbid blood stasis'..."
Robert quickly flipped through the medical records and stopped at the initial diagnosis report: "Creatinine 780, urea nitrogen 28, these are already indicators of uremia. You didn't use dialysis?"
"No."
Xun Jiahong said, "The regimen we've developed for patients is 'strengthening the spleen and kidneys, removing blood stasis and lowering turbidity.' The basic formula is Shenqi Dihuang Tang, with modifications: 30g of Astragalus, 20g of Codonopsis, 15g of Rehmannia, and 12g of Cornus officinalis... We also administer a Chinese herbal enema, using 30g each of Rhubarb, Oyster, and Dandelion, once every night, to expel turbid toxins from the body through the intestines."
Mueller immediately grasped the key point: "Rhubarb? I know this plant. It contains anthraquinones, which are powerful laxatives. Long-term use can cause intestinal melanosis. Aren't you afraid of the side effects?"
These words instantly quieted the atmosphere in the ward.
Xun Jiahong smiled and took over the conversation: "Professor Mueller, don't worry. We will regularly adjust the dosage according to the patient's condition. The amount of rhubarb has been reduced from 60g at the beginning to 25g now. The patient now has a bowel movement once a day, very regularly..."
"Chinese medicine emphasizes 'stop using medicine once the disease is cured', and it is not fixed."
Xun Jiahong continued, "When the patient was first diagnosed, he had a lot of turbid toxins, so he had to use rhubarb to clear the bowels and eliminate the turbidity. Now that the turbid toxins have been reduced, we have reduced the amount of rhubarb and added angelica and salvia miltiorrhiza to promote blood circulation and remove blood stasis, protecting kidney function."
Xun Jiahong then took the latest medical report from the nurse and handed it to Mueller and the others. "Everyone, after three months of treatment, the patient's creatinine has dropped to 420mmol/L, urea nitrogen to 15mmol/L, and urine protein has dropped from 3+ to 1+. The edema has completely subsided. He can now walk in the corridor for 20 minutes every day, and the nausea and vomiting have disappeared."
Robert stared at the numbers on the report, his finger repeatedly running over the creatinine line. "From 780 to 420... does this mean the glomerular filtration rate has substantially improved? This is almost a 'reversal' level of effect in the late stages of chronic kidney disease. How do you explain this mechanism?"
"In traditional Chinese medicine, it 'restores the qi transformation function of the spleen and kidneys.'"
Xun Jiahong patiently explained, "The kidneys are responsible for fluid metabolism, and the spleen is responsible for transporting and transforming water and dampness. Uncle Li's illness is essentially spleen and kidney qi deficiency, which prevents them from transporting and excreting toxins from the body. We use Astragalus and Codonopsis to nourish the spleen, Cornus officinalis and Rehmannia root to replenish kidney essence, and Rhubarb and Dandelion to eliminate the toxins that have already formed. This isn't about 'replacing' the kidneys, but rather 'restoring' their own function."
After a pause, Xun Jiahong added, "Modern pharmacological research has also confirmed that astragaloside IV in Astragalus can inhibit renal interstitial fibrosis, and that codonopsis saponins in Codonopsis can improve glomerular filtration membrane permeability. These findings support the Traditional Chinese Medicine theory of 'strengthening the spleen and benefiting the kidneys.' Of course, Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Medicine are different, so we can't generalize."
Mueller was silent for a moment and asked, "If we stop taking Chinese medicine now, will the patient's indicators rebound?"
"In traditional Chinese medicine, there's a saying that if the remaining poison isn't cleared, the vital energy won't be restored."
Xun Jiahong explained: "When taking medicine, pathogenic factors often remain dormant, so it is important to completely eliminate them. If the pathogenic factors cannot be completely eliminated, the condition will definitely recur after stopping the medication."
"Different stages of traditional Chinese medicine have different situations. This is a very complicated matter and cannot be explained in a few words."
"Thank you, Director Xun." Robert thanked him, and then subconsciously glanced at Chen Yang who had been silent beside him.
Obviously, Chen Yang is the first skilled Chinese medicine practitioner that Robert and others have come into contact with. Originally, Robert and Mueller thought that Chen Yang's high level of Chinese medicine knowledge was a special case, but they did not expect Xun Jiahong to be so capable.