This is the meeting report for the 2006 UCLA Center for East-West Medicine (CEWM) annual conference held at the UCLA Jules Stein auditorium on Saturday, October 28th. The event began with registration and a continental breakfast that allowed participants the opportunity to meet one another and discuss their experiences with integrative medicine. After the guests had checked-in and settled into the auditorium, Dr. Ka-Kit Hui, the Wallis Annenberg Professor in Integrative East West Medicine and the Founder and Director of the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, introduced Dr. Alan Fogelman, Executive Chairman of the Department of Medicine, who gave opening remarks. Dr. Fogelman welcomed the audience, particularly the Center’s distinguished guest – Professor Keji Chen, the Center’s Visiting Professor of Integrative Medicine from China, emphasizing the importance of integrative medicine and praising the Center’s leadership role in this field. Then Dr. Hui briefly introduced the audience to the field of integrative medicine, and discussed his own experiences with integrative medicine and the history of the CEWM.

Dr. Hui introduced Keji Chen, MD, President of the Chinese Association of Integrative Medicine and Academician of the China Academy of Science. Professor Chen spoke about the evolution of integrative medicine in China over the past 50 years. He began by introducing the audience to the origins of TCM in China, and its major developments over the past two thousand years. Then, drawing on his own experience, Professor Chen discussed the role TCM has played in China’s current health care system and its role in Chinese health care today. His own research suggests that many physicians and patients in China believe that both western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine are effective systems of medicine, and that combining these systems can provide the most effective health care possible. He also presented the results of some of the scientific research studies on the use of herbal medicine in the treatment of chronic diseases particularly cardiovascular diseases. His presentation was well-received by the audience, especially by the fellows and faculty in Integrative East-West Medicine at the Center who wanted to know more about China’s extensive experience in this field. After taking questions from the audience, Dr. Hui presented Dr. Chen with an Award of Appreciation for his significant contributions to integrative medicine and the CEWM.

Dr. Hui then discussed a U.S. perspective on integrative medicine. He explained that western medicine operates from a diseased-based model of care, well suited to attend to acute conditions when efficacy is well defined with specific treatments; TCM on the other hand, operates from a patient-based model of care, well suited for preventative medicine and to attend to chronic diseases. By blending these two models of medicine, not only in terms of treatment modalities, but also in terms of the theoretical framework, a more inclusive model of medicine could prevail. Dr. Hui then introduced Dr. Alan Fogelman telling the audience about the pivotal role Dr. Fogelman’s initial support as chair had played in establishing the CEWM. Without that support, Dr. Hui explained, the Center would never have been established.

Dr. Fogelman presented the results of his research on the effect of a “western diet” on inflammation and cognitive performance. Essentially, Dr. Fogelman explained, feeding mice a high fat diet produced inflammation in small blood vessels throughout the body, and that in turn affected cells within the central nervous system. The net result was that mice performed poorly on multiple measures of cognitive ability which can be prevented by the apolipoprotein A-I mimetic D-4F. Dr. Fogelman had a gift for explaining his research so that both laypersons and scientists could understand, and his talk generated much interest in the audience.

Other speakers included Dr. Hao Xu (MD, PhD, Associate Professor in Cardiology of the China-Japan Friendship Hospital), Dr. Zhaoping Li (MD, PhD, Associate Chief of the UCLA Division of Clinical Nutrition), and Dr. Jun Song (MD, PhD, Associate Professor in Neurology of Xiyuan Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences). Dr. Xu presented an overview of the pathogenesis of coronary artery disease (CAD), the role of inflammation in causing CAD, and the potential role of TCM in its prevention. Dr. Li presented UCLA’s research with Chinese red yeast rice, and its ability to decrease cholesterol levels when given as a supplement. Dr. Sun discussed the TCM concept of “blood stasis,” and how it relates to stroke and myocardial infarction from an integrative East-West perspective. Each speaker was able to tie in topics addressed by prior speakers and add something to what had been presented before. Taken together, the speakers made a strong case for the need to integrate western medicine and TCM in both research and clinical applications.

At the end of the presentations, Dr. Hui wrapped-up the conference by thanking Professor Chen, other speakers and the audience for an interesting morning of academic exchange, and then gave closing remarks regarding the important role integrative medicine and the Center have to play in healing the ailing healthcare system.