Recently, the kickoff meeting for the National Key R&D Program "Modernization of Traditional Chinese Medicine" special project "Development and Demonstration Application of Integrated TCM-Western Medicine Rehabilitation Technologies for Common Stroke Dysfunctions, Holographic Intelligent Evaluation Systems, and Digital-Intelligent Large Model Platforms" was held at Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (SHUTCM). Experts and scholars from fields including TCM, rehabilitation medicine, artificial intelligence, and engineering gathered to deliberate on the project’s implementation plan and advance the deep integration of TCM modernization with intelligent rehabilitation.

Within the project, Shanghai Nahefa Health’s R&D and technical team is deeply involved in Subproject 2: Equipment Development and Application of Integrated TCM-Western Medicine "Peripheral-Central" Mapping Targeted Regulation Technologies and Subproject 3: Dynamic Evaluation System for Holistic TCM Rehabilitation Outcomes in Stroke Based on Data Mining and Machine Learning. Through interdisciplinary innovation, the team aims to achieve technological breakthroughs and actively contribute to cutting-edge practices in integrating TCM-Western medicine approaches with intelligent development for stroke rehabilitation.

Nearly 20 cross-disciplinary experts attended the kickoff meeting, including Professor Xu Jianguang, Director of the Engineering Research Center for Intelligent TCM Rehabilitation (Ministry of Education) at SHUTCM; Vice President Peng Jun of Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine (project lead expert); Professor Guo Shijie of Hebei University of Technology (chair of the steering expert group); Professor Zhou Mouwang, Chair of the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Branch of the Chinese Medical Association; Professor Li Zengyong of the National Research Center for Rehabilitation Technical Aids; Deputy Director Nie Aiguo of the Traditional Chinese Medicine Inheritance and Development Division (Comprehensive Coordination Division for TCM) at the Shanghai Municipal Health Commission; Professor Wu Yi of Huashan Hospital, Fudan University; Professor Wang Jinwu of the Ninth People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine; Professor Shi Qingjiang of the School of Computer Science and Technology, Tongji University; and Professor Wu Huangan of the Shanghai Institute of Acupuncture and Meridian. Their participation underscores the project’s emphasis on "multidisciplinary collaboration and TCM-Western medicine integration."

The meeting was chaired by Professor Xu Dongsheng, Executive Director of the Engineering Research Center for Intelligent TCM Rehabilitation. In his opening remarks, Xu Jianguang emphasized that stroke rehabilitation represents a critical frontier in rehabilitation medicine. The project will adopt an "integrated TCM-Western medicine + intelligent" approach, prioritizing therapeutic efficacy as its core objective. By exploring the deep fusion of TCM and modern technology, he described the endeavor as a "strategically ambitious and systematically correct" initiative.

During the meeting, Lu Jianwei, the project’s chief investigator from SHUTCM, and leaders of each subproject systematically reported on the project’s overall design, implementation pathways, and technological innovations. Lu Jianwei introduced that the project focuses on stroke rehabilitation, aiming to achieve deep coupling between TCM-Western medicine integration and AI technologies. Through a "TCM rehabilitation intervention + intelligent evaluation + AI model" tripartite framework, it will establish a comprehensive rehabilitation intervention and evaluation system covering the entire stroke recovery cycle, fostering a "Chinese solution" with clinical applicability and transformative potential. Professor Wang Dongyan, Vice Dean of the Second Affiliated Hospital of Heilongjiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Associate Professor Wu Jiajia from the Rehabilitation Medicine Center at Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine (affiliated with SHUTCM); Professor Ren Yafeng of the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; Associate Researcher Wang Chen from the Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences; and Lu Jianwei presented the project’s full-cycle, closed-loop technological architecture and implementation pathways across key areas, including TCM rehabilitation interventions, integrated TCM-Western medicine protocols, intelligent evaluation systems, digital assessment platforms, and AI large model construction. Multiple authorities endorsed the research frameworks and implementation plans of the five subprojects, offering forward-looking and actionable recommendations.

In his closing remarks, Guo Shijie summarized three consensus-driven recommendations:

1. Maintain a clinical focus, prioritizing patient functional improvement and quality of life as ultimate evaluation metrics.
2. Strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration, integrating medical and engineering expertise alongside industry-academia-research-application synergy.
3. Embrace a global outlook by ensuring that technological development and the dissemination of achievements adhere to international standards, thereby exploring the worldwide influence of a "Chinese approach to rehabilitation medicine."

Led by SHUTCM, the project unites partners including Wuhan Yiruide Medical Equipment New Technology Co., Ltd., Shanghai Nahefa Health Technology Co., Ltd., and Liying Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. Focusing on stroke rehabilitation, it integrates TCM/integrated TCM-Western medicine interventions with cutting-edge technologies like AI and intelligent device development, striving for landmark breakthroughs in merging TCM modernization with intelligent rehabilitation. Shanghai Nahefa Health’s deep involvement in Subprojects 2 and 3 will further enhance the clinical translation and industrial applicability of stroke rehabilitation technologies, providing critical support for constructing a Chinese-characteristic full-cycle stroke rehabilitation system.

Sources: Science and Technology Division of SHUTCM, Engineering Research Center for Intelligent TCM Rehabilitation (Ministry of Education), School of Rehabilitation Medicine