Integrating Conventional and Holistic Medicine through Standardized Medical Knowledge: Using Modern Physiology as a Stepping Stone to Explain Byeon-Jeung in Korean Medicine

Over the past several decades there have been many attempts to integrate the fields of Conventional and Holistic medicine. However, to date, successful integration has yet to be achieved. For the purpose of providing greater understanding and effective methods for the diagnostic and treatment of functional body disorders this review presents a plausible method for successful consolidation of the reductionism and holism concepts present at the core of modern and traditional medicine. Reconstruction of modern physiological knowledge and understanding of changes in cardiovascular function was used to provide explanations for symptoms associated with the concept of Byeon-Jeung in Korean Medicine. The symptoms correlated with the Byeon-Jeung for Liver Qi Stagnation, Spleen Qi Deficiency, and Stomach Yin Deficiency were shown to be linked to decreases in blood flow and the corresponding functional disorders associated with such. These results demonstrate how modern physiological understanding of the body can serve as an appropriate stepping stone to assist in the integration of Conventional and Holisitic medicine.