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Original Article
- Maimendong-Tang Treatment for Subacute and Chronic Cough in a Primary Care Korean Medicine Clinic
- Jungah Uhm, Jungtae Leem, Jihyun Hwang, Kwan-Il Kim, Sungduk Hong, Dasol Park
- Perspect Integr Med. 2026;5(1):28-35. Published online February 11, 2026
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.56986/pim.2026.02.005
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Graphical Abstract
Abstract
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Supplementary Material 
- Background
Despite guideline-based evaluation of identifiable causes, many patients still have refractory or unexplained chronic cough, highlighting the need for adjunctive therapies. Real-world clinical evidence for Maimendong-Tang (MMDT) in primary Korean medicine is scarce.
Methods
Medical records from 1 primary Korean medicine clinic were retrospectively reviewed. Adults with subacute or chronic cough who received MMDT for ≥ 2 weeks were included in the study. Outcomes were improvement in severity for cough and sputum. The data were summarized descriptively, cumulative proportions achieving ≥ 50% and ≥ 3-point cough-NRS reductions were calculated by visit and cough type, and exploratory k-means clustering (Jaccard distance) was performed, and herb-symptom bipartite networks were assessed.
Results
Thirty-one patients were included (mean age 53.6 ± 14.8; 90% female; 14 subacute, 17 chronic). Inter-visit medians (IQR) were 35.5 (32.0-49.5), 34.5 (33.2-43.5), and 34.0 (34.0-42.0) days for Visits 1-2, 2-3, and 3-4. Cough NRS scores decreased from 7.95 ± 1.04 at Visit 1 to 3.14 ± 1.87 at Visit 2 (subacute 8.21 ± 0.97 → 2.58 ± 1.46; chronic 7.74 ± 1.06 → 3.63 ± 2.09), and sputum NRS scores from 3.18 ± 2.51 to 1.68 ± 1.72. By Visit 2, 67.7% achieved ≥ 50% cough reduction (subacute 85.7%; chronic 52.9%). No adverse events were observed. Clustering and herb-symptom networks showed no meaningful prescription-pattern differences by co-occurring symptoms; subacute- and chronicstratified networks resembled the overall network.
Conclusion
MMDT prescription may be associated with a decrease in cough and sputum severity. Due to risk of bias, generalizability is limited; however, demographics, clinical characteristics, and treatment patterns, may provide foundational data for large-scale prospective studies.
Case Report
- Delivery of Telemedicine to Manage Cardiac Palpitations with Herbal Medicine in a Patient with Premature Ventricular Complexes Following Catheter Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation
- Jimin Kim, Hyungsun Jun, Jungtae Leem, Hyeryun Lee, Chul-Woo Ahn, Dasol Park
- Perspect Integr Med. 2025;4(2):110-116. Published online June 23, 2025
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.56986/pim.2025.06.006
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- A patient living abroad who underwent catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation 3 years ago experienced recurrent arrhythmia symptoms 3 months ago and was diagnosed with premature ventricular complexes (PVCs) confirmed by Holter monitoring. He was advised to undergo repeat catheter ablation, however, he sought traditional Korean medicine (TKM) treatment advised via telemedicine. He reported continuous irregular heartbeats [numeric rating scale (NRS) score 10]. He was started on Yixin Tang, and by the 3rd day of administration his symptoms of irregular heartbeats had disappeared (NRS 0) and did not return during the subsequent 320-day observation period. Pain caused by tightness in the chest and throat (NRS 8) did not show improvement despite various prescriptions; a noncardiac etiology, likely gastrointestinal, was suspected. Heart failure as measured by NT-pro BNP levels, was consistently elevated borderline, around 130 pg/mL, (possible heart failure), and on Day 320 it was normal measuring 50 pg/mL (heart failure less likely). No serious adverse events were reported following TKM treatment. This case suggests the potential value of TKM remote treatment in meeting the unmet needs of arrhythmia patients. Further research, including controlled clinical trials and development of telemedicine-specific guidelines, is warranted.
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