International Eurasian Academy of Sciences, IEAS

Academician

Liguo ZHU

Profile:

Elected Academician of the International Eurasian Academy of Sciences in 2016, Professor Liguo Zhu is a Chinese physician and researcher in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) orthopaedics and traumatology whose clinical and research work has focused on the standardisation and evidence-based evaluation of TCM manipulation, as well as the diagnosis and treatment of degenerative disorders of the bones and joints, particularly spinal diseases. Born in 1961, he received his bachelor’s degree from Tianjin College of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 1984 and his Doctor of Medicine from Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 2011. He trained at the Institute of Orthopaedics and Traumatology of the China Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine and subsequently served at Wangjing Hospital of the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, where he was Director of the Department of Spine, Vice President for Medical Affairs, and President. He is currently Chief Researcher, Chief Physician, Professor, and Doctoral and Postdoctoral Supervisor at the China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Director of the National Centre of TCM Sports Medicine, and Director of the Beijing Institute of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Orthopaedics and Traumatology. Elected Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 2023, he is also a Qihuang Scholar and an academic successor of the bone-setting tradition of Professor Sun Shuchun. He has served in leadership positions in the Chinese Medical Doctor Association and the China Association of Chinese Medicine and is Editor-in-Chief of China Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology. His honours include the titles of National Advanced Worker, National Model of Medical Ethics, the Wu Jieping Medical Innovation Prize, and the State Council Special Allowance. His career has combined clinical orthopaedics, research and modernisation of TCM manipulation, medical education, and disaster-relief medicine.

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Professor Zhu’s research has centred on TCM manipulation and degenerative bone and joint disorders, with an emphasis on translating traditional clinical techniques into standardised, measurable, and evidence-based interventions. Building on the rotational manipulation developed by Professor Sun Shuchun for cervical spondylosis, he led the development and systematic evaluation of a cervical rotation-and-lifting technique for cervical spondylotic radiculopathy. His team established quantitative methods for measuring manipulation parameters and investigated the biomechanical effects of cervical manipulation using intradiscal pressure measurement, dynamic imaging, and motion analysis. This work contributed to the evidence base for the clinical use and international evaluation of TCM manipulation and supported his involvement in developing clinical guidance on cervical disorders. To improve the transmission and training of manipulation techniques, his team developed an intelligent training and assessment system capable of recording manipulation forces and providing immediate feedback, creating a human–machine approach to skills training that has been adopted in TCM medical education. His broader clinical research has addressed the management of spinal degeneration and other degenerative bone and joint diseases, leading to integrated treatment approaches combining herbal medicine, manipulation, acupoint stimulation, and rehabilitation. He has also developed herbal formulations and therapeutic devices for spinal and knee disorders. Following the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, he participated in clinical fracture treatment and helped develop TCM rehabilitation protocols for fractures, amputation, and paraplegia, with subsequent applications in other disaster-relief settings. Professor Zhu has led numerous national research projects, received two National Science and Technology Progress Awards and several provincial and ministerial awards, and holds 28 patents. He has published more than 360 papers and edited more than ten monographs. Through the systematic study and modernisation of TCM orthopaedic techniques, clinical research, medical education, and disaster-relief service, Professor Zhu has contributed to the development and broader application of TCM orthopaedics and traumatology.