Abstract: Objective To summarize the features of multiple sclerosis (MS) in China, analyze their traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) syndrome and pathogenesis, standardize the method of TCM syndrome differentiation and treatment. Methods The clinical features/tongue and pulse/differentiation of TCM syndrome of 261 MS patients were comprehensively analyzed using clinical statistical method. Results Female to male ratio of patients was 1.8:1, 58 percent of patients were from 20 to 40 years old at the onset, 80.2 percent of patients had no cause, most of them had acute onset and remitting relapsing type, their average relapsing times was 2.2, symptoms and signs of both first attack and registering time were mainly dysfunction of sensation, vision, and motor, the type of TCM syndrome differentiation were as follows, deficiency of both liver and kidney yin, deficiency of both spleen and kidney yang, deficiency of both yin and yang, deficiency of spleen qi, phlegm-heat and blood stasis in the body, and so on. In TCM, kidney, liver and spleen were corresponding zang. Conclusion This group of patients had the same clinical features as those reported by Chinese and overseas experts, deficiency of liver and kidney yin and deficiency of both spleen and kidney yang as well as phlegm/blood stasis /humidity/heat in the body are main pathogenesis and clinical TCM type, In summary, deficiency of both liver and kidney yin, phlegm-blood stasis in the body are main pathogenesis and clinical TCM type, both their tongue and pulse expression also support this conclusion.

Key words: multiple sclerosis, clinical features, syndrome differentiation in traditional Chinese medicine