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It always intrigues me when a patient comes in and attributes his symptom or complaint to something being deficient or excessive in the body system in traditional Chinese medicine terms. Being nurtured with a Western medicine background, where almost all theories are scientific and evidence-based, I am often lost in words trying to respond to these patients with reference to the traditional Chinese medicine context. HK Pract 2007;29:289-290 Western medicine has all along been the mainstream of health care in Hong Kong, but traditional Chinese medicine is also commonly used by the local population. l! However the development of traditional Chinese medicine Research has shown that cultural factors do have influences on patients ' concepts of health, their health care attitudes and health seeking behaviour.1.2 Chinese patients do have their own perceptions of self, health and illness.3,4 The nature, the course and the outcome of a medical encounter are often influenced by cultural expectations. s.n Patients alway