“Four methods of diagnosis” of Chinese Medicine was known as looking,
listening, questioning, and pulse-taking. Human body is an organic integration,
and local pathological change can affect the whole body. For example,
pathological changes of internal organs can be reflected by face as well as arms
and legs. Therefore, through the four diagnosing methods of looking, listening
and smelling, questioning, and pulse-taking, doctors can find symptoms of each
aspect, knowing the causes, nature and internal connection of the disease, which
make contribution to choose treatment based on syndrome differentiation in next
step.
Method of looking: this means doctors use eyes to observe patients whole body
and local change of appearance and figure. Through massive medical practices,
Chinese Medicine realized that the outside part of body, especially face and
tongue, is related with internal organs closely. Once internal organs are sick,
there must be related reflection appeared in body surface. Therefore, through
the method of looking, doctors can know the internal pathological change of
internal organs. For example, though some patients are looked like to have more
serious illness condition, they still have exuberated Qi if they have good
spirit. Such patients can have a better therapeutic effect than those who have
gloomy spirit condition. Colors of face can also show pathological changes of
different internal organs. Green, red, yellow, white, and black correspond to
liver, heart, spleen, lung, and kidney. If face color looks green, it may refer
to liver pathological change, while yellow may refer to pathological change of
spleen.
Method of listening and smelling: this means that doctors listen to patients’
voice and breathe by ears and smell patients’ body or patients’ excrement. All
these are valuable to distinguish patients’ illness condition.
Method of questioning: it is very important in clinical practice of Chinese
Medicine. When the disease happens? What are the causes and process of this
disease? Do patients have any other disease before? Where is the painful
position? How about patients’ living diet habit? All these factors related with
disease can be get through asking patients or their relatives.
Method of pulse-taking: this means touching patients’ body with hands.
Doctors touch or press some certain parts of patients in order to know more
about illness condition. It can be divided into pulse-taking and palpation.
These four methods are an integrated whole, and they must be combined
organically in clinical prognosis. Besides, disease usually has complex
manifestations and the disease and its related manifestations are different. At
this moment, doctors’ experience is important to make a correct diagnosis.
