Mechanism of External Use of Traditional Chinese Medicine-“Three Micro-Regulations for Balance” Based on Neural-endocrine-immune Network / 中国实验方剂学杂志

ABSTRACT

The external treatment of traditional Chinese medicine(TCM) is the earliest known treatment method for diseases. It originated in pre-Qin dynasty, grew up in Han and Tang dynasties, innovated in Song and Yuan dynasties, and developed in Ming and Qing dynasties. It has made outstanding contributions to the human health.With the rapid rise of modern drug-derived diseases, the external treatment of drugs has attracted wide attention at home and abroad due to its small adverse reactions, convenient application and accurate curative effect. With the increasing of TCM for external use drugs, dosage form, method, the clinical application of TCM has been expanding unceasingly, it has been widely applied to the pediatric, gynecological, internal medicine, oncology, however, there has not many specifications for amount, usage, time, and course of treatment, which are more arbitrary. Topical use of TCM can play a direct role in the treatment of local lesions. The external use of TCM is mainly explained by "the principle of external treatment is the principle of internal treatment", and the internal use function can only be explained from the theoretical part of TCM on its external treatment characteristics, and most can not well guide the corresponding clinical application of TCM. There are few reports on the mechanism of external use of TCM, and most of them are from theory to theory, lacking the confirmation and support of modern studies. There are also related reports on transdermal absorption of scattered TCM for external use. However, most of the external use of TCM are crude preparations such as pulverising, decocting in water and alcohol extraction, and its more random which the dose, dosage type, course of treatment, external use methods, coupled with its complex ingredients and low content, it is difficult to explain the mechanism of external use simply from transdermal absorption, nor does it meet the facts of clinical application of TCM. The mechanism of external use is not clear, and restricted the development of TCM for external use. This article through the extensive experimental research, literature research and database research, and proposed that TCM for external use through adjustment of neural-endocrine-immune network disorders, through local micro effect, micro stimulation, micro absorption, that's the "three fine tuning balances", and exert external use curative effect, so as to achieve the purpose of treating diseases.