Abstract
Objectives : In present, various definitions of Zhongshu are being used interchangeably in Korea. The paper attempted to discover the disease of Zhongshu as studied by Lidongyuan, who was ahead of his time. Methods : A database of medical books has been studied to find Lidongyuan's writings on the disease of Zhongshu, and mentions about Li's works in past medical books. The paper contemplated the subject by defining the disease of Zhongshu and reviewing the disputes related to the subject. Results & Conclusions : Lidongyuan gave a detailed explanation on the fact that Zhangjiegu distinguished between Zhongshu and Zhongre, and this was influenced by Shangshu as mentioned in Taipinghuiminhejijufang. Therefore, it can be deduced that he was aware of the fact that summerheat-heat as latent summer heat syndrome is lurking inside the body, not being able to be released. According to the disease of Zhongshu by Lidongyuan, yin cold was receieved secondary after first receiving summerheat-heat. It is either summerheat damaged defensive qi, failure in storing the essence made defensive qi weak, or seasonal reasons have caused the defensive qi to be drained and leave the body exposed to damage by summerheat. This is because the fundamental main cause is the hitting of summerheat, since yin cold was received after the presence of summerheat-heat is made first. Many doctors in the following generation criticized that Lidongyuan's disease of Zhongshu cannot be named as a Zhongshu due to its similarity with Shanghan. However, they cannot be viewed as similar since it is a phenomenon where yin cold becomes congested while the body is weak and heat is generated in the body due to summerheat-heat. The doctors who said they were similar only focused on the external cause that was only the superficial issue. According to Lidongyuan's method, the right way to treat a Zhongshu disease is to use the method of tonifying the qi and eliminating the heat in conjunction with eliminating the internal dampness or treat the external syndrome, or to use a formula to tonify the qi and eliminate the fire heat before eliminating the internal dampness or treating the external syndrome.
