From "Experience" to "Evidence": Evidence-Based Medicine Facilitates the Inheritance and Innovation of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Evidence-based medicine (EBM) has been introduced and disseminated in China for over two decades, with milestone achievements made in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) research. Based on the analysis of the connotation of evidence-based Chinese medicine, this paper briefly combs the current situation and challenges of the development of evidence-based Chinese medicine, and summarizes that evidence-based Chinese medicine is beset with "four surpluses" and "four shortages". According to a new understanding of the EBM methodological system (including methodology and basic research approaches), this paper also puts forward suggestions on conducting clinical TCM research based on evidence-based practice, with a view to promoting TCM's transformation from "experience" to "evidence", exerting TCM's original advantages, and driving TCM's inheritance, innovation, and development.