Liu Wansu (; 1110–1200) was a Jin dynasty Chinese physician. He observed the high frequency of fever and inflammation in serious diseases and promoted the idea of using herbs of cooling nature to treat these conditions. This was a step in the opposite direction of many of his predecessors, who focused on using warming herbs. This work had much influence on the later concept of ''wen bing'' or epidemic febrile diseases, which corresponded to (and preceded) the Western concept of

contagious disease A contagious disease is an infectious disease that is readily spread (that is, communicated) by transmission of a pathogen through contact (direct or indirect) with an infected person. A disease is often known to be contagious before medical s ...

. He also undertook a detailed study of the '' Su wen'', describing the etiology of disease in relation to the teachings of that famous text. Liu is credited with founding the "Cold and Cooling School" and developed the theory of "similar transformation". The body's host ''qi'' is ''yang'', therefore warm. Hence any evil guest ''qi'', either externally invading or internally engendered, will tend to transform into a warm or hot evil similar to the body's host or ruling ''qi''. In recognition of his significant contributions to medical theory in China, Liu is considered one of the "four great masters" of the Jin and Yuan dynasties, alongside Zhang Congzheng, Li Dongyuan, and Zhu Zhenheng.

References

Citations

Works cited

* * * {{Authority control 1110 births 1200 deaths Jin dynasty (1115–1234) people 12th-century Chinese physicians People from Cangzhou Physicians from Hebei