1. Objectives
Recent studies have reported that the digestion-related items contribute significantly to the diagnosis of constitution, though these were not described as the indicator for diagnosing Sasang constitution in 『Donguisusebowon(東醫壽世保元)』「Sasanginbyeonjeunglon(四象人辨證論)」. The purpose of this study was to explore the reasons why such a gap appeared.
2. Methods
The digestion-related items and their rationales to be shown in eleven studies on the Questionnaire for Sasang Constitution Diagnosis were reviewed. Thirty primary studies included in two systematic reviews were also reviewed to reconsider the significance of digestion-related items as an indicator for diagnosing Soeumin.
3. Results & Conclusions
A few pathways were found in studies on the Questionnaire for Sasang Constitution Diagnosis, which could overestimate the significance of digestion-related items more than actual. Besides, in the primary studies included in two systematic reviews, there was also a possibility of overestimating the importance of digestion-related items due to some biases in the selection of subjects and the conducting of the study. Therefore, there might be room for reconsideration that indigestion was necessarily an indicator for diagnosing Soeumin. |
