[Contraindications of spirit (shen) in acupuncture and moxibustion].

ABSTRACT The taboos of man-spirit (RenShen) and bottom-spirit (KaoShen) are two kinds of time-related contraindications that are more commonly seen in the literature of acupuncture and moxibustion. The meaning of man-spirit is often extended to qi-blood or mind, or else directly equals to heaven-spirit (TianShen). It is highly possible that the bottom-spirit is subordinate to man-spirit, and both Taoist philosophy and the SanCai theory declare the importance of bottom in human body. The violation of contraindications could lead to diseases in the neighborhood where man-spirit travels. However, the results are generally recorded as ulcer, lingering disease and death in most medical texts. From Ming dynasty, more and more doctors have expressed disapproval of man-spirit and bottom-spirit.

[The path of creating TCM female periodicals in the Republican period].

A"special issue of female physicians" was included in the 1934 Kunghwa Medical Journal. In 1939, Qian Bao-hua, together with a batch of female TCM professional medical workers, inaugurated a "Chinese Feminine Physicians" included in the "Journal of Column of Traditional Chinese Medicine". The former one was published independently in 1941, only for 8 issues and was suspended in the same year. In the Republican period, the 7 years of running the TCM periodicals by the female physicians was the miniature of the campaign of feminine rights in the TCM field from heat to cold, from foolish through confidence to self-realization. As the only extant TCM periodical, the Chinese Feminine Physicians run by females in the upper half of the 20th century, the basic cause of its failure may lie on the wrong evaluation of its audiences.

[Research on acupuncture for throat diseases in Qing Dynasty].

The accurate acupoint and application of acupuncture for throat diseases described in Zheng Mei-jian's book Chonglou Yuyao (Jade key to the secluded chamber) is clarified through exploration on recordings of the relative acupuncture skills in medical literatures of the mid-Qing Dynasty. It is found that the so called open-the-wind-way-acupuncture includes at least two groups of acupoints on the hand and the head, they are applied respectively for light and severe cases of sore-throat. Together with the third group of points which is used for the extremely severe cases, the three groups of points are all classified into the concept of qi-acupuncture. Although the composition of acupoints and process of application are different in recordings of various medical literatures in same periods, the treating principles are all focused on "opening the passage for elimination of the wind so as to remove the pathogenic wind-heat and promote blood circulation".