As a stand-alone medicine, however, its efficacy is mainly in the areas of acute and catastrophic care that comprise a relatively minor percentage of total patient complaints. The consensus report was particularly critical of biomedical research design, since the panel had based their assessments solely on data from randomized controlled trials. This outcome is of limited value to TCM practitioners who are trained to devise individualized treatment protocols.
Biomedical trials test one drug at a time.
This approach is bound to reveal unwanted side effects. In contrast, TCM seeks combinations of herbs to balance out adverse effects of individual herbs. Diseases chosen for study in biomedical research are, too often, imprecise collections of symptoms, such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome or Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. These categorizations lump together different conditions that are readily distinguishable by TCM diagnosis. The most significant recommendation of this group is that only qualified TCM practitioners should be allowed to practice conventional medicine.