I Can Hear the Heart's Voice of Traditional Chinese Medicine-Chapter 157 - 76: Turning the Neurology Ward into an Acupuncture Assembly Line

As he spoke, Lu Xuan shifted his position slightly, allowing the intern to step forward.

The intern looked somewhat nervous until Lu Xuan patted his shoulder, which helped him relax a bit, and he began to take the pulse as Lu Xuan had demonstrated.

After a moment, Lu Xuan asked, "Can you determine it?"

The intern’s expression froze, and then he awkwardly shook his head.

"It’s okay if you can’t determine it. The most important thing is that you’ve taken this step."

Lu Xuan didn’t mind; a few months ago, he was no different from the intern and thus could understand how he felt.

Then, Lu Xuan asked the others to also try taking the pulse.

As expected, the situation with the others was similar to the first intern, as they were all new and lacked experience, much like a blank sheet of paper.

However, a blank sheet of paper has its advantages.

That is, it’s easier to fill with new things.

If it had already been written on, there might be some existing understanding, which could make guidance easier. But once a wrong path is taken, it’s the hardest to correct.

"Actually, there’s no need to feel embarrassed for not knowing. I was just like you all before, knowing nothing." Lu Xuan didn’t hesitate to share some of his experiences with the group.

The interns looked at Lu Xuan with some disbelief.

It was hard to imagine that this Dr. Lu, who was much better than them, also had awkward moments and a similar past.

Upon hearing this, the group felt much more at ease.

Dr. Lu was like this, so there’s nothing for us to be embarrassed about.

"However, your foundation in pulse diagnosis is indeed a bit lacking. Take this opportunity to learn. Whether you can grasp it, though, is up to you."

Lu Xuan pondered for a moment, then slowly said, "We all know about the body’s five organs, with the left hand’s Cun, Guan, Chi corresponding to the heart, liver, kidneys, and the right hand’s Cun, Guan, Chi corresponding to the lungs, spleen, and life gate. Understanding it from this perspective makes it much easier than trying to distinguish between sinking and floating.

In pulse diagnosis, if you can feel the Cun pulse in the left hand, it indicates a normal heart pulse. If not, it suggests insufficient heart blood, often accompanied by palpitations or shortness of breath. The Guan pulse on the left hand should be neither too strong nor too weak. Too strong indicates excessive liver energy, while too weak is also undesirable, often seen in gastritis-like conditions."

"Dr. Lu, how should one determine the characteristics of a specific pulse?" an intern suddenly asked.

Lu Xuan smiled slightly, "Let me explain the floating pulse. It’s palpable lightly but disappears when pressed hard, floating on the flesh like a boat on water. Carefully examine the floating pulse: if it has strength, it shows exterior repletion; without strength, it indicates deficient floating. The sinking pulse, on the other hand, feels like a stone sinking in water. If it lacks strength, it signifies weak true essence; if it has strength, it suggests pain from qi stagnation. A fine pulse is thread-like, thin, and unbroken, sinking yet extremely fine..."

In just about ten minutes, Lu Xuan shared a lot, predominantly related to pulse diagnosis.

"It’s okay if you don’t understand some things. Think and reflect on it later. However, in traditional Chinese medicine, the most crucial aspect of pulse taking is practice. Without practice, no matter how much you hear or see, it’s impossible to accurately determine a patient’s pulse characteristics." Lu Xuan added at the end.

The group nodded repeatedly.

Lu Xuan and the others remained calm, but this made the patient, Gui Rongrun, and his son anxious.

They initially thought that once a doctor arrived, he might cure him shortly, and by tomorrow, he could be back to work. But now they realized that wasn’t the case at all!

Why did it turn into a lecture halfway through?

Gui Rongrun slightly opened his mouth, signaling his son to quickly urge them on.

The son nodded helplessly and looked at Lu Xuan, "Doctor, can we treat the illness first?"

Seeing the patient’s anxiety, Lu Xuan stopped talking and took out acupuncture needles. First, he performed the draining technique on the philtrum, then used three-edged needles to prick and bleed the twelve Jing points. He then inserted needles at Baihui, Laogong, and Taichong points, all using the draining technique.

Although acupuncture can work wonders, the treatment time is often quite long.

Ye Xiang observed Lu Xuan’s needling process and couldn’t help but ask, "Dr. Lu, although I’m not studying traditional Chinese medicine, I’ve often heard that TCM isn’t known for emergency medicine. Honestly, I haven’t seen much of it in real life either. Some TCM doctors I know often lament that TCM lags far behind Western medicine in emergency care."

Taking advantage of the needle retention interval, Lu Xuan glanced back at Ye Xiang and thought for a moment, "Actually, strictly speaking, TCM originated from emergency medicine. It began with treating insect bites, animal injuries, knife wounds, food poisoning, and difficult childbirths in practical production activities, thus gradually developing its emergency medical practices.

Throughout history, the diagnostic and treatment techniques of TCM emergency medicine were enriched and enhanced, forming an independent medical system, and during that time, it occupied an absolutely leading position in the history of world medical development."

"Then why do we see so little of TCM emergency care now?" Wu Liguo asked with a puzzled look.

"The line of transmission was broken, coupled with the rapid rise of Western medicine, which quickly became mainstream, causing TCM emergency care to be forgotten before it could develop much."

At this point, Lu Xuan sighed, "However, nowadays, TCM is beginning to pay more attention to emergency treatment. Looking at textbooks like ’Emergency Medicine in Traditional Chinese Medicine’, one can’t help but feel that there’s more ’promoting and less inheriting’, and intense research and exploration of ancient medical emergency texts is still needed. TCM is easy to learn but hard to master, especially in emergency care. Restoring TCM emergency care to its peak is no small feat."