Clinical application of traditional herbal medicine in five countries and regions: Japan;South Korea;China's Mainland;Hong Kong, China;Taiwan, China

Objective:To study the characteristics of the clinical application of traditional herbal medicine in five countries and regions where traditional medicine(TM)is widely used:Japan;South Korea;China's Mainland;Hong Kong,China;Taiwan,China.And to analyze,from multiple angles,the variations in the methods of TM used in each countries and regions.Methods:Fifty commonly used traditional herbs(TOP50)from classical formulae were selected,and descriptive statistics,correlation analyses,and Friedman test were used to compare methods of clinical application and dosages in the countries and regions of interest based on a retrospective review of randomly-selected medical records.Results:There were significant differences in sequencing TOP50 among the five countries and regions(P<.01).The adherence to the classical formulae,from strong to weak was Japan;China's Mainland;Taiwan,China;Hong Kong,China;South Korea.There were also significant differences in TOP50 dosing regimens(P<.01).Overall dosages of TOP50 from high to low were:China's Mainland;Hong Kong,China;Taiwan,China;South Korea;Japan.Finally,there were significant differences in the dosage intervals(P<.01),with dosage intervals from maximum to minimum as follows:China's Mainland;Taiwan,China;Hong Kong,China;South Korea;Japan.Conclusions:The clinical dosages of traditional herbal medicine used in the China's Mainland are relatively large compared with those prescribed in the other four countries and regions,and the range of dosages in China's Mainland is more flexible.On the other hand,clinical dosages of TOP50 are the lowest in Japan,where the dosage range is also the narrowest,supporting the idea that Doctors of Kampo medicine are highly cautious and are likely to adhere strictly to classical formulae,while Hong Kong,China and Taiwan,China are in the middle.The dosage of TOP50 in South Korea is significantly lower than that used in the China's Mainland;Hong Kong,China and Taiwan,China where the adherence to the classical formulae was the lowest,albeit slightly higher than that in Japan.The methods of clinical application of traditional herbal medicine in the five countries and regions were affected by multiple factors,including history,geography,climate,and culture.

中日韩三国中药临床用量特点比较

目的:比较中药应用较广的中国、日本、韩国的中药临床用量特点,并分析其原因。方法:以"经方常用50味药物"为研究对象,随机抽取3个国家的门诊病案或收集医案著作中临床内服汤剂处方,对其中药临床用量情况进行了描述性统计。结果:3个国家"经方常用50味药物"中,药物的平均剂量差异有统计学意义(P<0.01),临床用量整体情况从大到小依次为中国、韩国、日本;药物的剂量分布区间差异有统计学意义(P<0.01),剂量分布区间从大到小依次为中国、韩国、日本。结论:中国中药临床用量较大,用量范围较为灵活;日本用量最小,用量范围最窄,用药谨慎;韩国用量偏小,稍大于日本,明显低于中国。3个国家中药的临床用量特点与其历史、环境、气候、人文等多种因素有关。