Collateral Theory and Vascular Lesion Treatment

Abstract

The correlation between the collateral system of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) and the vascular system of Western medicine was approached and the conception of "Mai" was analyzed. It was pointed out that "Mai" is an independent viscera with certain structure, function, and characteristics in metabolism. Ancient TCM physicians basically share the same knowledge on the vascular system with biomedicine in terms of its anatomical structure, but the distinctive TCM theory on qi-blood correlation can enrich the contents of the vascular system. The concept of "collateral-vascular system disease" was proposed based on ancient TCM literature and a clinical epidemiology survey on 3,469 cases with arteriosclerosis, approached by common pathological steps. The pathogenesis of vessel collateral-vascular system disease was investigated according to collateral theory, which pointed out the treatment principle — unblocking the collateral. Research in the treatment of cardio-cerebrovascular disease with Tongxinluo capsules — a representative formula. The relative treatment prescriptions are beneficial for the treatment of blood vessel lesion under the guidance of collateral theory in TCM, improving prevention and treatment level of vascular and related diseases.