Keynote 2: Informing Chinese Medicine Practice through a Whole Evidence Lens: Rheumatoid Arthritis as a Case Study

Keynote 2: Informing Chinese Medicine Practice through a Whole Evidence Lens: Rheumatoid Arthritis as a Case Study

Date: 12 July 2025, Sunday | Time: 1300 - 1330 | Venue: The NAK Auditorium, Academia 

Co-Chairs: Dr LAU Tang Ching (NUH) & Dr (TCM) CHANG Soy Lee (ACMS)

Speaker: Prof Tony ZHANG, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia

Background: Evidence-based Medicine necessitates methodologies that systematically incorporate diverse evidence levels beyond classical literature and Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) into Chinese medicine. Aligning traditional practice with modern standards requires a structured approach and significant effort. The "Whole Evidence Approach," developed by the China–Australia International Research Centre for Chinese Medicine (CAIRCCM), accelerates evaluating the best available evidence to optimize clinical practice.

Methods: This framework synthesizes several evidence levels, including classical literature from the Zhong Hua Yi Dian (Encyclopaedia of Traditional Chinese Medicine), textbook and guideline consensus, RCTs, non-RCTs, cohort and case studies, and experimental research. Using Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) as a case study, this presentation illustrates evidence compilation and discusses barriers and facilitators to clinical incorporation.

Results: The clinical synergy observed in Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) management highlights how the "Whole-Evidence Lens" functions to validate integrative care models. For example, combining Chinese herbal medicine with conventional pharmaceuticals improves symptoms more effectively than standard care alone. This supports Chinese medicine accessibility as a viable integrated option for chronic disease management.

Conclusion: The Whole-Evidence Lens approach provides a mechanism to incorporate multifaceted data into clinical guidelines. Moving beyond a narrow RCT focus ensures CM practice is grounded in rigorous modern evaluation and historical clinical evidence.