医学自从轩辕、岐伯开始。原本并没有内科和外科的区分。这是因为源于运气学说中有司天在泉的主管，就有主气客气加临的更迭变化；脏腑有虚实的不同，就有淫邪胜复郁结乖变的异常；药物有气味性味的差异，就有逆治从治、反正权衡的方法。所以医生这一职业本质是一样的。到了唐宋之间，分立出十三个科室，意图是学问难以全部阐述清楚，让人各自专攻一科，就像水路和陆路不同的途径一样。只是疮疡虽然被称为外科，但其根本必然根植于内部，而且多运用针灸去腐生肌的技术，似乎治疗外部比治疗内部更难呢？近世以来，重视内科而轻视外科的人，是因为近来的医生放弃内科理论而去治疗外科疾病，这是舍弃根本而追求末节。我在闲暇中竭尽精力采集摘录，参悟《素问》《灵枢》的深奥旨意，搜集古今名贤的确切论述，汇编成一部书，命名为《外科大成》，直接陈述本末关系，一目了然，就像星辰有运行的轨迹、银河有源头和流向，或许不至于把人的生命看得像野草一样轻贱。如今《外科大成》刻印完成，还有对内科病症治疗的粗略评注随后出版，因此写下我平素的所见所闻作为跋文。
愧生阳子祁坤 作跋
Medicine originated from Xuanyuan (Yellow Emperor) and Qibo. Initially, there was no distinction between internal medicine and surgery. This is because it stems from the theory of Five Movements and Six Qi, where the governing influence of Si Tian (Heavenly Stems controlling specific periods) leads to the shifting interactions between Zhu Qi (Principal Qi) and Ke Qi (Guest Qi). The deficiency or excess of Zang-Fu organs results in abnormal variations such as excessive pathogenic factors, depression, and rebound. The differing flavors and natures of medicinal herbs necessitate the balancing of contrary and compliant treatments, as well as correct and reverse approaches. Thus, the practitioner's role is fundamentally one and the same. However, during the Tang and Song dynasties, thirteen departments were established separately. The intention was that medical knowledge is too vast to be fully mastered by one person, encouraging individuals to specialize in a single department, much like different paths for water and land travel. Nevertheless, although sores and ulcers are termed "external medicine," their root cause must lie within the interior. Furthermore, they often involve techniques such as acupuncture to remove necrotic tissue and promote muscle regeneration, suggesting that treating the exterior might be more difficult than treating the interior. In recent times, those who value internal medicine while despising external medicine do so because contemporary physicians abandon internal medical principles to treat external diseases, which is abandoning the root to follow the branch. During my leisure time, I exerted utmost effort to collect and select materials, delving into the profound principles of *Suwen* (Basic Questions) and *Lingshu* (Spiritual Pivot), and gathering definitive discussions from famous sages of ancient and modern times, compiling them into a single book titled *Waike Dacheng* (Great Completeness of Surgery). It directly states the relationship between root and branch, making it clear at a glance, just as stars have their orbital degrees and the Milky Way has its source and flow, hopefully preventing human life from being treated as lightly as worthless grass. Now that *Waike Dacheng* has been printed, a rough commentary on the diagnosis and treatment of internal medicine symptoms will be published subsequently. Therefore, I record my past observations as this postscript.
Qin Kun, styled Kuisheng Yangzi, wrote the postscript.