Draft:WikiJournal Preprints/Modern medicine as an evolutionarily distinct entity from Allopathy

Origin of the term
Allopathy (ə-lŏp′ə-thē) [German Allopathie : Greek (from ἄλλος, állos, other, different + πάϑος, páthos, suffering)] is a term coined by Samuel Hahnemann (1755-1843) in 1810 in an attempt to distinguish between homeopathy and usual medical practices of the time. When Hahnemann coined the term, he essentially referred to the harsh medical practices of his era which included bleeding, purging, vomiting and the administration of highly toxic drugs, a practice that homeopathy did not advocate.

Allopathy as a medieval pseudoscience
Medicine in the eighteenth century or the early nineteenth century was not strictly based on scientific principles; rather it was far from it.


 * Rational vs supernatural explanations for disease
 * The search for the elixir of life/eternal life
 * Heroic medicine
 * Treatment modality and death of George Washington
 * Alchemy and its transition to chemistry

Research: history of homeopathy

 * Placebo and psychological domain

Other traditional streams of medicine
AYUSH

How modern medicine differs from allopathy
https://www.fda.gov/forpatients/approvals/drugs/ucm405622.htm
 * Epidemiology, at population level rather than at individual level
 * Biomedical and population perspective
 * Demography and Public health
 * Hypothesis testing
 * Drug trials
 * Phases of a drug trial
 * Evidence based medicine
 * Levels of evidence
 * Evidence based practices
 * How guidelines are designed
 * Change in understanding and concepts
 * Cigarettes: past and present
 * Dutch famine - Barker hypothesis
 * Addiction studies - present and past
 * How Dutch knowledge of anatomy and medicine was accepted by previously isolated Japan

Contemporary use of the term
Usually in countries that were under colonial rule.
 * http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/MCI-relief-for-integrated-medicine-practitioners/articleshow/7014659.cms
 * Modern abuse created by naturopaths and homeopaths.
 * India: point 1.2.2 of http://www.mciindia.org/RulesandRegulations/CodeofMedicalEthicsRegulations2002.aspx . When they write 'allopathic medicine' they actually mean modern medicine. Even in case of the names of the medical colleges http://www.mciindia.org/View_College_Details.aspx?ID=577 as well as http://www.mciindia.org/View_College_Details.aspx?ID=526, they actually mean that alternative medicine is not practiced here and that they are talking about modern medicine. I have objection to the synonymous or interchangeable use of the terms. I wanted to write the article to raise awareness about the erroneous use of the term. The contemporary use of the term to mean mainstream medicine (both its use in India by the medical profession, and by homeopaths worldwide) is a pseudo-insult and should be discouraged.
 * Modern allopathy http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-integrated-allopathy-ayurveda-homeopathy-colleges-cum-hospitals-proposed-for-min-girish-mahajan-s-home-turf-2416063
 * http://education.medicaldialogues.in/maharashtra-allopathy-ayurveda-homeopathy-colleges-cum-hospitals-to-be-set-up-at-jalgaon/
 * https://www.indiamart.com/humbing-ethicals/allopathic-medicine.html
 * Australia
 * New Zealand
 * Ghana: Standard treatment guidelines http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/documents/s18015en/s18015en.pdf
 * Ghana
 * Iran "Allopathy is often described as 'western' medicine, the antithesis of homeopathy, yet all medical systems are infused with culture-specific values, ideas and beliefs. Agnes Loeffler's insightful and original book investigates how allopathic knowledge, theories and practice guidelines come to be understood and applied by practitioners in a non-western context. Based on research amongst doctors in Iran, Loeffler describes how the system of allopathic medicine has adapted to local explanations of health and disease and to the economic, social and religio-political realities framing contemporary Iranian life and culture. This approach simultaneously problematizes the view of allopathic medicine as a 'western' entity exerting a hegemonic influence over non-western cultures, and provides a rare glimpse of the complexities of modern Iran society - exploring the interfaces between culture, health and the experience of illness."
 * https://globalstudents.stanford.edu/blogs/india-trip/unani-and-allopathic-medicine
 * (South) Korea
 * (South) Korea
 * (South) Korea

Analogies to its usage

 * Referring to humans as apes simply because humans have evolved from apes
 * This is similar to the erroneous use of Caduceus instead of Staff of Esculapius as the symbol of medicine.

Lack of scientific approach in alternative medicine
Also see Alternative medicine

The domain of surgery
http://ispub.com/IJPS/4/2/8232#
 * Ancient sciences, allopathy and modern medicine

Healthcare costs

 * Research expenditure
 * Expenditure of medicines
 * Expenditure of pathological tests

Technological advancements

 * Scientific temper vs technological temper

Summary
No -pathy in modern medicine. Should be evidence based and following scientific methodology. If you see issues with the methodology, you are free to question it and to suggest a better alternative. But you would also need to substantiate your claims parametrically before the open scientific community.

Dr. Diptanshu Das is trained in and is a practitioner of modern medicine. He is also a volunteer contributor to several Wikimedia projects including Wikiversity and Wikipedia, and is an Editorial Board member of Wiki J Med.
 * Conflicts of interest