Open Access Research Article

Visualizing Traditional Chinese Medicine and Information Representation and Retrieval: Opportunities and Challenges in a New Era of Big Data

David C Mainenti*

Palmer iSchool of Library, Long Island University, USA

Corresponding Author

Received Date: December 20, 2020;  Published Date:March 23, 2021

Abstract

Computer-based medical diagnostic systems have seen tremendous growth since the 1950s, particularly with the arrival of personal computers, the Internet, portable devices, and big data analytical environments. Such technologies utilize the fundamental principles of information representation and retrieval (IRR) to solve complex questions pertaining to health and disease. However, since inception, such systems have virtually ignored traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) techniques, oftentimes due to their lack of success in randomized controlled trials. To this day, little is known about how TCM works scientifically and, yet, it remains an essential part of the world’s healthcare system, particularly in several Asian countries. As disease remains widespread across society, the diagnostic and treatment methods of TCM should be compared alongside Western medical models, in light of modern IRR techniques, to determine if a new, futuristic form of translational medicine can be developed that improves medical outcomes and reduces health care costs worldwide. This study analyzes all published research in SCOPUS relating to TCM and IRR for the period 1985-2020 and employs bibliometric techniques, multiple correspondence analysis, and data visualizations to investigate author productivity, collaborations, and research trends. Opportunities and challenges were discovered that will help identify future directions within the field as we enter a new era of data-intensive scientific discovery in medicine.

Keywords:Bibliometrics; Computer-based medical diagnostic systems; Data visualization; Herbal pharmaceutical technology; Multiple correspondence analysis; Traditional Chinese medicine; Information retrieval

Abbreviations:IRR: Information Representation and Retrieval; TCM: Traditional Chinese Medicine; IoT: Internet of Things; AI: Artificial Intelligence; ISO: International Organization for Standardization

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