title: The Concept of Wind in Traditional Chinese Medicine.
abstract: The use of folk medicine has been widely embraced in many developed countries under the name of traditional, complementary and alternative medicine (TCAM) and is now becoming the mainstream in the UK and the rest of Europe, as well as in North America and Australia. Diversity, easy accessibility, broad continuity, relatively low cost, base levels of technological inputs, fewer side effects, and growing economic importance are some of the positive features of folk medicine. In this framework, a critical need exists to introduce the practice of folk medicine into public healthcare if the goal of reformed access to healthcare facilities is to be achieved. The amount of information available to public health practitioners about traditional medicine concepts and the utilization of that information are inadequate and pose many problems for the delivery of primary healthcare globally. Different societies have evolved various forms of indigenous perceptions that are captured under the broad concept of folk medicine, e.g., Persian, Chinese, Grecian, and African folk medicines, which explain the lack of universally accepted definitions of terms. Thus, the exchange of information on the diverse forms of folk medicine needs to be facilitated. Various concepts of Wind are found in books on traditional medicine, and many of those go beyond the boundaries established in old manuscripts and are not easily understood. This study intends to provide information, context, and guidance for the collection of all important information on the different concepts of Wind and for their simplification. This new vision for understanding earlier Chinese medicine will benefit public health specialists, traditional and complementary medicine practitioners, and those who are interested in historical medicine by providing a theoretical basis for the traditional medicines and the acupuncture that is used to eliminate Wind in order to treat various diseases.
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Medicine, Dubai Specialized Medical Center & Medical Research Laboratory, Dubai Medical College and Dubai Pharmacy College, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Mehrab
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dashtdar
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department, International Modern Hospital, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Mohammad Reza
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Dashtdar
authors.affiliation: Resident of Orthopedics at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: Babak
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Dashtdar
authors.affiliation: Dubai Specialized Medical Center & Medical Research Laboratory, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Karima
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kardi
authors.affiliation: Shiraz University of Medical Science, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Khabaz
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Shirazi
keywords:  Feng Xie;  devil Wind;  pernicious influence;  traditional Chinese medicine; acupuncture