 85  Chin J Integr Med 2011 Feb;17(2):85-87 The consumption per capita of herbal medicine in Japan may be the highest in the world (1) . Traditional Japanese medicine is one of the traditional East Asian medicines (TEAM) as shown in Figure 1. According to the Web survey (2) by the Japan Kampo Medicines Manufacturers Association (JKMA) during the period from August 5, 2008 to September 12, 2008, 83.5% of 684 medical doctors answered that they were using Kampo (2) . However, many countries have difficulties in handling traditional medicine in their medical system partly due to the lack of evidence in clinical settings and partly due to the problems in safety and quality control. Why is Kampo so popular and well integrated into modern medicine in Japan? The authors would like to show how Kampo developed in Japan. History Before Meiji Restoration Kampo was introduced to Japan from ancient China via Korea, or directly in the 5th century, together with Buddhism and other cultures. Kampo was first used in higher social classes, but since the 15th century it has provided general people natural material-based medicine. During Edo era, Japanese government kept an isolationism policy, and only the Dutch could trade with Japan only through the Dejima island, Nagasaki. "Abdominal diagnosis" was invented by Japanese Kampo practitioners, and the way of diagnosis and treatment was greatly developed. Tremendous cases of Kampo treatment were reported in the Japanese literatures. After Meiji Restoration The Meiji legislation decided that only those who mastered Western medicine were certified as medical doctors. Therefore, Kampo practitioners became uncertified professionals, and Kampo was eliminated from official medical education. Although there was resistance to this governmental decision, it was in vain. However, Kampo practice survived, and the Japan Society for Oriental Medicine (JSOM) was established in 1950. Since the coverage of Kampo by national health insurance started in 1967, Kampo has been recognized as an important medical approach in modern medicine (Figure 2). Current Status Clinical Practice Kampo is used by approximately 85% of clinical practitioners in Japan, as mentioned above. National health insurance started to cover the clinical practice of Kampo in 1967, and the number of Kampo formulas greatly increased since 1976. At present, 148 formulas are covered by national health insurance. Although the FEATURE ARTICLE Traditional Japanese Medicine, Kampo: Its History and Current Status Yoshiharu Motoo 1,2 , Takashi Seki 1,3 and Kiichiro Tsutani 1,4 © The Chinese Journal of Integrated Traditional and Western Medicine Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011 1. The Japan Society for Oriental Medicine, Tokyo (105-0022), Japan; 2. Department of Medical Oncology, Kanazawa Medical University, Uchinada, Ishikawa (920-0293), Japan; 3. Department of Traditional Asian Medicine, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai (980-8575), Japan; 4. Department of Drug Policy and Management, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (113-0033), Japan Correspondence to: Prof. Yoshiharu Motoo, Tel: 81-76-218-8284, Fax: 81-76-218-8283, E-mail: motoo@ kanazawa-med.ac.jp DOI: 10.1007/s11655-011-0653-y A BSTRACT Traditional Japanese medicine, Kampo, is used by over 80% of medical doctors in Japan. Owing to its high quality and safety, Kampo has been integrated into modern medicine, and there are 345 randomized controlled trials using Kampo in Japan as of 2010. Although there are a number of articles in top journals about basic science research, we can find only small numbers of high-quality clinical evidence. Since undergraduate education on Kampo has been established, integrative approach with the balanced combination of modern medicine and Kampo is expected to generate good clinical evidence in the near future. KEYWORDS Kampo, traditional medicine, evidence, randomized controlled trial, integrative medicine Prof. Yoshiharu Motoo