TCM for TB

Researchers Connect Clinical Evidence of Traditional Chinese Medicine Syndromes and Pulmonary Tuberculosis

A new study entitled “Serum protein gamma-glutamyl hydrolase, Ig gamma-3 chain C region, and haptoglobin are associated with the syndromes of pulmonary tuberculosis in traditional Chinese medicine” was published this July in the BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
Tuberculosis (TB) is the second cause of death among infectious diseases globally after the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). In 2012, worldwide there were 8.6 million new TB cases with 1.3 million of those fatal, and 0.3 million deaths from HIV-associated TB. The duration for standard western therapy for TB treatment is at least 6 months, however, throughout this time, TB can become drug-resistant and lead to severe hepatic side effects.
Interestingly, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been used to treat tuberculosis (TB) based on classifications of TCM syndromes by inhibiting Mycobacterium, reinforcing the immune system and decreasing the pulmonary toxicity. In TCM, a syndrome can be defined as a group of symptoms and signs in a patient at a precise stage during the development of a disease. In TCM, it is said that every disease has a natural course of progression for a certain period from occurrence, initial, intermediate, and advanced stages, to recovery, relapse, or deterioration.

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