Empirical vs. Etiological Approaches in Oriental Medical Research

While Oriental medicine, by nature, may be considered an etiologically-based approach to healing, its role in modern research is primarily empirical. The absolute dependence on symptomatic presentation to establish acupuncture point selection goes against the grain of traditional Oriental methods, which emphasize pulse, tongue and other diagnostic tools to determine the overall biological and psychological condition of the subject. Recently introduced diagnostic methods in Oriental medical research indicate a potential shift from empirically-to etiologically-centered designs. This article reviews current mainstream approaches to efficacy trial design and proceeds with the analysis of newer research models, such as a constitutional approach spearheaded in Korea by the field of Four-constitutional Medicine.