Jiao Chang was a disease, recorded in both ancient and contemporary medical literature. However, its conceptual understanding remained inconsistent and even fallacious. This paper systematically examines the origin and evolution of Jiao Chang in terms of connotation by drawing on methodologies from philology, historiography and conceptual history. The concept of Jiao Chang originated from the linguistic descriptions of its physical symptom "hemorrhoids connecting with the Qian Yin (perineum region anterior to acupoint Hui Yin or urogenital triangle)", and the symptom "urinating with feaces or blood". The disease with these symptoms was first named Jiao Chang in the Yuan Dynasty, and was described as "urinating with fecal discharge". The main characteristics of this disease was "translocation of discharging urine and feaces", in particular, postpartum in the Ming Dynasty. The cause of the disease was attributed to "intestinal perforation and bladder rupture" in the Qing Dynasty. The disease was associated with rectourethral or rectovesical fistula in Western medicine at the end of the Qing Dynasty. The disease was explored in integrated medicine in terms of naming, symptoms, pathology and treatment in the Republic of China times. Currently, this disease is predominantly classified as a posnatal disease, relating to multiple biomedical nosology. Jiao Chang, according to historical research, refers to "a disease mainly characterised by feaces discharge through the urethra or vagina, and urine discharge from the anus". It relates to simple or complex fistula formed between or among the urinary, reproductive and digestive tracts, such as rectovaginal fistula, rectourethral fistula, rectovesical fistula and recto-vesico-vaginal fistula in Western medicine.

This paper examined the Six Modes of Depression proposed by Zhu Danxi and the theory of Rufus in his On Melancholy, compared and analysed the theories and treatments related to qi depression, phlegm depression, blood depression, food depression, heat depression and dampness depression (Six Modes) and the theory of Rufus on depression. It was found that similarities existed between the Six Modes of Depression and On Melancholy in terms of theories. Both of them paid attention to qi and food in depression while they were in different cultural and medical backgrounds. Additionally, they both had their unique insights into the etiology, pathogenesis and treatment of depression, for instance, they had different views on 'dryness' (Gan in Chinese medicine) and 'wetness' (Shi in Chinese medicine) in depression pathogenesis. Such comparison interprets the commonalities and differences in the understanding of mental illness between the two systems of medicine and provides an important reference for broadening the cognition of mental illness and understanding Chinese medicine and Middle Eastern medicine.

Ding Fubao was a pivotal figure in developing and disseminating modern western medicine in China by translating, compiling and writing a large number of western medical books. His medical books are crucial historical documents in the history of publishing, science and technology, and translation in China. However, current research on his medical books remains insufficient in terms of unclarified basic quantity, bibliography, publication time and version details. Based on physical evidence, this paper examined these historical materials, synthesized the previous studies, and finally constructed a complete, accurate and standardised catalog of Ding's medical books up to date, with 157 books in total. Compared with the previous studies, this catalog added 8 books which had never been mentioned before and deleted 12 books previously misattributed to Ding, supplemented 172 versions, corrected 104 bibliographic details, and left 53 issues open.

The Ren Ying and Cun Kou method is believed to be one of the most important pulse-taking methods in the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor (Huang Di Nei Jing). The key to explore the questions of the Ren Ying and Cun Kou method in pulse-taking is to understand the exact meanings of 'Sheng' or 'Bei' based on the theories in chapters of Zhongshi, Jingmai, and Jinfu in Lingshu. As it was known, 'Sheng' or 'Bei' indicate the grading of disease severity shown from diagnosis. This paper examined lexical items and related literature about the Ren Ying and Cun Kou method in pulse-taking, 'Sheng' or 'Bei' and corresponding three Yin and three Yang . It was found that when the pulse characteristics from three Yin and three Yang were different, 'Sheng' or 'Bei' showed various three Yin and three Yang. This, therefore, determined the grading of three Yin and three Yang. Additionally, the Ren Ying and Cun Kou method in pulse-taking and such medical cases in Shi Ji and the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor were also analysed in the paper.

This paper focused on the Yi Jing Hui Yuan, written by Wu Jiayan, analysed the academic features of the book , and explored its influence on the following generations drawing on the reference of the work by Gong Tingxian. It was found that this book has many remarkable characteristics. It was rooted in Su Wen and Nan Jing academically, synthesizing theories from various medical schools. The book highlighted fitness regime, temperance and spiritual cultivation because it was deeply influenced by Taoism which was the religious belief of Wu Jiayan in his later years. The book attached equal importance to both acupuncture and herbal medicine because Wu Jiayan was deeply influence by the acupuncture theories of Dou Hanqing. The book had some creative formulae for fitness regime because Wu Jiayan was good at tonification and involved heart, spleen and kidney into consideration in his clinical experiences, for instance, taking full use of ginseng. This book and its author Wu Jiayan guided another famous clinician Gong Tingxian in his spleen-stomach theory and the application of ginseng and calomel. The academic and clinical value of this book made it widely included in books after that and had a significant impact on the following generations, while the full edition of this book has not been found up to now in China.

This study compared the annotation differences among various editions of the textbook Classical Literature of Traditional Chinese Medicine based on the medical texts handed down from ancient times, unearthed medical bamboo slips, Guang Yun (a historical Chinese rime dictionary), integrating modern chemical knowledge and synthesizing previous scholar ideas. The paper examined the semantic evolution of the character Dou () in the term Dòu Bǐ () in the Biography of Cang Gong with glyph analysis. It further explored the phonetic and graphic interrelationships among the variants Dòu Bī (), Dòu Bǐ (), and Dòu Bī (), supplementing relevant textual evidence. This study also discussed the medical case of "postpartum illness" in the Biography of Cang Gong and clarified its specific meaning. It was found that Xiāo Shí () should be identified as 'saltpeter', primarily composed of potassium nitrate according to contemporary chemistry. The paper argues that the term Dòu Bǐ () was used to describe the remarkable efficacy of Xiāo Shí () in promoting blood circulation and resolving stasis, specifically highlighting the small and minimal size of the expelled blood clots. Consequently, it confirms that Dòu Bǐ () should be read as liaison and interpreted as "bean-sized particles". Additionally, it highlights the significance of specialized textual genres and specific disciplinary contexts in the etymological and interpretive study of terms.

This paper examined the related literature of Pinellia ternate and Prunella vulgaris, summarised the syndrome and treatment characteristics of refractory insomnia and analysed the clinical cases of refractory insomnia treated by modern well-known doctors. It was found that Pinellia ternate and Prunella vulgaris have unique advantages in treating refractory insomnia caused by phlegm and fire stagnation (TanHuo YuJie). In addition, it was found that the interpretation of this medicinal function in terms of sleep aid changed from 'regulating Yin and Yang' to 'treating based on syndrome differentiation'. This elaborated the influence of Chinese traditional culture and current clinical requirements on the functions of herbs. It indicates that the value and meaning of such a change in interpreting the function of Pinellia ternate and Prunella vulgaris on sleep aid is the in-depth integration of traditional Chinese culture and clinical requirements. This lays the groundwork for empirical research of the efficacy of traditional Chinese medicine.

The term "Persian Qīng Dài", first appeared in the Tang Dynasty, was used mainly for textiles-dyeing, eyebrows-darkening and hair-dyeing. It was also used as medicine orally taken for clearing heat, removing toxins, cooling blood and hemostasis. However, its botanical origin and its differences from native Qīng Dài have been debated for ages. This paper collated historical literature with ancient methods reduction and clarified the original plant, provenance and manufacturing process of Persian Qīng Dài. It was found that Persian Qīng Dài was, in fact, foreign indigo "flowers" derived from Indigofera tinctoria L. (wood-indigo), rather than from mactra clam powder or other sources. Indigofera tinctoria possesses distinct advantages as an indigo-yielding species; the indigo produced was superior to that obtained from the Chinese native plants Baphicacanthus cusia, Polygonum tinctorium and Isatis indigotica. Historical Persian Qīng Dài was probably introduced from India, where traditional indigo manufacture relied on Indigofera tinctoria and employed steeping and oxidation with little lime. It is recommended that Indigofera tinctoria be reinstated as a legitimate botanical source of Qīng Dài in the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, and that Chinese production be improved by adopting the Indian steeping-oxidation process.

'Zong Mai' firstly appeared in Ling Shu of Inner Cannon of the Yellow Emperor (Huang Di Nei Jing). Its meanings are complicated and controversial. This paper examined 'Zong Mai' in terms of semantics, critical interpretation of ancient texts and the theories of traditional Chinese medicine. The paper aims to clarify two things. One is that ZONG () is not similar to ZHONG () and ZONG () in meanings. Another is that 'Zong Mai' is different from 'the centralised focus' (). It was found that 'Zong Mai' does not refer to 'numerous meridians' but specifically stands for an important major meridian closely related to the San Jiao (formed by the aggregation of various meridians). This might provide an active guide for current clinical practice.

The Communist Party of China faced many challenges, in the early years of the People's Republic of China, in terms of public health, such as scarce medical resources, rampant epidemics, and widespread feudal superstitious beliefs in rural areas. It unfolded a series of actions and regulations to improve perception and behaviors of farmers and peasants on public health, including presentations on their poor experiences to remind them of the root causes of health issues in the old society, improving their scientific health knowledge by instruction publicity and education, setting up evaluation criteria to contest on health knowledge, putting modern health knowledge into a guide which peasants could understand, implementing the system of setting up 'model examples' and making everyone a winner, and promoting the persistence of hygienic practice among the masses. This great public health practice program reshaped the perception and behavior of the public, providing historical insights for the implementation of "the Healthy China" strategy in the new era.