Conceptualizing a Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pathology of Arousal Diagnostic and Pathophysiological Framework for Postacute Sequelae of COVID-19

Teresa Calloway; An Fu Hsiao; Matt Brand; Jennifer Lai; Chelsea Geise; Briana Caceido; Ruth Alpert; Michael Hollifield

doi:10.1089/acu.2022.0022

Conceptualizing a Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pathology of Arousal Diagnostic and Pathophysiological Framework for Postacute Sequelae of COVID-19

Med Acupunct. 2022 Jun 1;34(3):167-171. doi: 10.1089/acu.2022.0022. Epub 2022 Jun 16.

Authors

Teresa Calloway¹, An Fu Hsiao^{1

2}, Matt Brand¹, Jennifer Lai¹, Chelsea Geise¹, Briana Caceido¹, Ruth Alpert¹, Michael Hollifield^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Research Healthcare Group, VA Long Beach Healthcare System, Long Beach, CA, USA.
² Department of Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA.
³ Department of Psychiatry, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA.

Abstract

Introduction: The postacute sequelae of COVID-19 (PASC) is a serious heterogeneous condition that affects a significant minority of those who endured COVID-19. PASC involves multiple body systems and an illness trajectory that has stages now being identified in medical research.

Objective: Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and acupuncture are well suited to conceptualize and treat PASC and other postviral conditions. No description of TCM theory and its relationship with modern medical theory about PASC and its illness trajectory currently exists.

Conclusion: The authors provide an overview of the potential value of TCM for conceptualizing and treating PASC with a few examples and clarify directions for research.

Keywords: ANS dysregulation; PASC; TCM; acupuncture; cell danger response; integrative medicine; long COVID.