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"The Kidneys control the two lower orifices"

Patterns

8 Principles

Qi, Blood,
& Body Fluids

Zang Fu Patterns

Six Stages

Four Levels

San Jiao

Four Methods

Looking

Listening

Asking

Palpation/Pulse

Documents

General Symptoms

Yin Yang Table

General Symptoms and Their Meaning in TCM

Colors of the Face
Appearance
Eyes
Nose
Ears
Gums
Lips and Mouth
Throat

Chills and Fever
Perspiration
Appetite, Eating, and Taste
Defecation and Urination
Pain
Sleep
Menses

Colors of the Face

- Red (Excess or Xu Heat)
Whole Face	Heat from External Evil or Hyperactivity of Zang Fu (Excess)
Cheeks, Tidal Fever, Night Sweats	Internal Heat (Xu)
- Pale (Cold or Loss of Blood)
Pale White	Yin Excess or Yang Xu
Bright White with Puffy and Bloated Appearance	Yang Qi Xu
Withered White	Blood Xu
- Yellow (Damp or Xu)
Body, Face, Eyes, and Skin	Jaundice
Bright Orange	Yang Jaundice (Damp Heat)
Smoky Dark	Yin Jaundice (Cold Damp or Long Term Stagnation)
Pale Yellow (Not Bright)	Blood and Qi Xu
- Blue (Cold, Pain, Blood Stagnation, Convulsions)
Pale with Blue Tinge and Severe Pain in the Epigastrium and Abdomen	Excess Yin and Cold
Bluish Purple Face and Lips with Intermittent Pain Behind the Sternum or Precordial Region	Stagnation of Heart Blood
Bluish Purple Face and Lips with High Fever and Violent Movement of Limbs in Children	Infantile Convulsion
Dark Gray (Blood Stagnation and Kidney Xu)
Pale and Dark with Lumbar Soreness and Cold Feet	Kidney Yang Xu
Dark without Brightness with Scaly Skin	Prolonged Blood Stagnation

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Appearance

Overweight with Mental Depression	Qi Xu and Excess Damp Phlegm
Loss of Weight in Long Term Illness	Exhaustion of Essential Qi
Thin with Dry Skin	Blood Xu
Extended Neck	Excess Lung Syndrome with Excess Phlegm
Facing Downward	Qi Xu with Shortness of Breath, Dislike of Speaking
Violent Movement of Limbs	Wind Diseases, Infantile Convulsions
Weakness, Motor Impairment, and Muscular Atrophy of Limbs	Wei Syndromes
Pain, Soreness, Heaviness and Numbness in Tendons, Bones and Muscles, with Swelling and Restricted Movement of Joints	Bi Syndromes
Numbness or Impaired Movement of Limbs on One Side of the Body	Hemiplegia or Wind Stroke

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Eyes

Redness and Swelling	Wind Heat or Liver Fire
Yellow Sclera	Jaundice
Ulceration or Canthus	Damp Heat
Upward, Straight Forward, or Sideways Staring	Liver Wind

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Nose

Flapping of Ala Nasi	Heat in the Lungs or Qi Xu of both Lung and Kidney
Clear Discharge	Wind Cold
Turbid Discharge	Wind Heat
Prolonged Turbid Discharge, with Stinking Discharge	Rhinitis or Chronic Sinusitis

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Ears

Burnt Black and Dry and Withered Auricles in Severe Illness	Consumption of Kidney essence
Purulent Discharge	Damp Heat of Liver and Gall Bladder

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Gums

Pale Gums	Blood Xu
Redness and Swelling	Stomach Fire
Redness and Swelling with Bleeding	Injury of Vessels by Stomach Fire

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Lips and Mouth

Pale Lips	Blood Xu
Bluish Purple Lips	Retention of Cold or Blood Stagnation
Red and Dry Lips	Excess Heat
Sudden Collapse with Open Mouth	Xu
Sudden Collapse with Lockjaw	Excess

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Throat

Redness, Swelling, and Soreness	Lung and Stomach Heat
Redness and Swelling with Yellow or White Ulcer Spots	Toxic Heat in Lung and Stomach
Bright Red with Mild Soreness	Yin Xu with Hyperactive Fire
False Gray and White Membrane over Throat that is Hard to Remove, and Bleeds Following Removal	Diphtheria from Heat in the Lung Consuming Yin.

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Chills and Fever

- Chills Accompanied by Fever (External Pathogen Fighting with Antipathogenic Qi (Zheng Qi))
Severe Chills, Mild Fever, Absence of Sweating, Headache, General Aching, and a Superficial Tight Pulse	Wind Cold
Mild Chills, Severe Fever, Thirst, Sweating, and a Superficial Rapid Pulse	Wind Heat
- Alternating Chills and Fever
Alternating Chills and Fever with a Bitter Taste in the Mouth, Thirst, Fullness and Stuffiness in the Chest and Hypochondrium	Intermediate Syndrome
Alternating Chills Occurring at Specific Times of the Day	Malaria
- Fever without Chills
High Fever with Aversion to Heat, Profuse Sweating, Severe Thirst, and a Surging Pulse	Excess Heat in the Interior
Fever at a Fixed Hour of the Day	Tidal Fever
Tidal Fever in the Afternoon or Evening, with Night Sweating, and a Red Tongue with Little Moisture	Yin Xu
Fever more Pronounced in the Afternoon with Constipation, and Fullness and Pain in the Abdomen	Yangming Fu Syndrome
- Chills without Fever size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" color="#0000FF">
Chilled Appearance, Cold Limbs, and a Deep, Slow, and Weak Pulse	Interior Cold Xu

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Perspiration

Absence of Sweating in Exterior Syndromes	Invasion by Pathogenic Cold
Presence of Sweating in Exterior Syndromes	Exterior Xu from Exposure to Wind, or Exterior Heat from Invasion of Pathogenic Wind Heat
Night Sweating (May also have Tidal Fever, and a Red Tongue with Little Coat	Yin Xu with Hyperactivity of Yang Heat
Spontaneous Sweating (May also have Chills, Listlessness, and Lassitude)	Qi and Yang Xu
Profuse Sweating with High Fever, Mental Restlessness, Thirst for Cold Drinks, and a Surging Pulse	Excess Interior Heat
Profuse Sweating with Listlessness, Feeble Energy, Cold Limbs, and a Deep Thready Pulse in a Severe Case	Total Exhaustion of Yang Qi

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Appetite, Eating, and Taste

Poor Appetite in a Prolonged Illness with Emaciation, Loose Stools, Lassitude, and a Pale Tongue with Thin White Coat	Spleen and Stomach Weakness
Poor Appetite with Stuffiness in the Chest, Fullness in the Abdomen, and a Thick Sticky Tongue Coat	Stagnation of Qi of the Spleen and Stomach Caused by Retention of Food or Dampness
Excessive Appetite and Easily Hungry in a Skinny Patient	Excess Stomach Fire
Hunger with no Desire to Eat, or Eating Small Amounts of Food	Impairment of Stomach Yin, Producing Internal Xu Heat
Lack of Thirst During an Illness	Body Fluids are not Consumed (Usually present in a Cold Syndrome, or where Heat is not Noticeable)
Presence of Thirst During an Illness	Consumption of Body Fluid or Retention of Phlegm Damp in the Interior Preventing Fluid from Ascending
Bitter Taste in the Mouth	Liver and Gallbladder Fire
Sweet Taste in the Mouth	Damp Heat in the Spleen and Stomach
Sour Regurgitation	Retention of Heat in the Liver and Stomach
Tastelessness	Spleen Xu

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Defecation and Urination

Constipation from Dryness of the Stool	Accumulation of Heat or Consumption of Body Fluids
Loose Stools	Spleen Xu, or Damp Retention in the Spleen
Watery Stool with Undigested Food	Spleen and Kidney Yang Xu
Bloody Stool with Mucus and Tenesmus	Damp Heat in the Intestines and Stagnation of Qi in the Intestinal Tract
Yellow Urine	Heat Syndrome
Clear and Profuse Urine	Absence of Pathogenic Heat, or Cold Syndrome
Turbid Urine	Damp Heat Pouring Downward, or Downward Leakage of Turbid Essence.
Red Urine	Injury of Vessels by Heat
Clear Urine with Increased Volume	Infirmity of Kidney Qi, and Bladder Dysfunction in Controlling Urine
Scanty, Yellow Urine, with Urgent and Painful Urination	Downward Movement of Damp Heat in to the Bladder
Dribbling Urination or Retention of Urine in Severe Cases	Exhausted Kidney Qi (Xu) or Stagnant Bladder Qi (Excess) due to the Downward Infusion of Damp Heat, Stagnant Blood, or Stones.

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Pain

Severe Distention and Mild Pain Moving from Place to Place, Often Occurring in the Chest, Epigastric, Hypochondriac, and Abdomen	Qi Stagnation
Headache with Distending Sensation in the Head	Upward Disturbance by Fire and Heat
Prickling Pain, Sharp and Fixed in Location, Often Occurring in the Chest, Epigastric, Hypochondriac, and Lower Abdominal Regions.	Blood Stagnation
Pain with and Heavy Sensation (Weighty Pain), Often Occurring in the Head, Four Limbs and Lumbar Regions	Dampness Blocking Qi and Blood
Colicky Pain	Abrupt Obstruction of the Qi by Substantial Pathogenic Factors
Pulling Pain which is Spasmodic in Nature and Short in Duration	Liver Wind
Burning Pain with a Burning Sensation and a Preference for Coolness, Often Occurring in the Hypochondriac regions on Both Sides, and in the Epigastric Region	Invasion of the Collaterals by Pathogenic Fire and Heat or from Excessive Yang Heat due to Yin Xu
Pain with a Cold Sensation and a Preference for Warmth, Often Occurring in the Head, Lumbar, Epigastric, and Abdominal Regions.	Pathogenic Cold Blocking the Collaterals or Lack of Warmth and Nourishment in the Zang Fu and Meridians due to Yang Qi Xu
Dull Pain that is not severe, lingers, and lasts for a long time	Xu Cold Syndrome
Headaches	1. Disturbance of the Clear Yang by Pathogenic Factors (Usually Excess) 2. Stagnation of Qi and Blood in Endogenous Diseases Blocking the Meridians and Depriving the Brain of Nourishment 3. Blood and Qi Xu Failing to Nourish the Head, and the Sea of Marrow Becomes Empty.
Chest Pain	Pathological Change in the Heart and Lungs
Hypochondriac Pain	Obstruction or Undernourishment of the Liver and Gallbladder Meridians
Epigastric Pain (Upper, Middle. Lower)	Invasion of the Stomach by Pathogenic Cold, Retention of Food in the Stomach, or Invasion of the Stomach by Liver Qi
Abdominal Pain - Upper is SP - Lower is KI, BL, LI, SI, Uterus - Sides are LIV	Excess Causes: Retention of Cold, Accumulation of Heat, Stagnation of Qi, Stagnation of Blood, Retention of Food or Parasitic Diseases Xu Causes: Qi Xu, Blood, Xu, Deficiency of Cold
Lumbago	Obstruction of the Kidney Meridian or Deficiency of the Kidney Failing to Nourish the Lumbar Region
Pain in the Limbs (Joints, Muscles, or Meridians)	Retardation of Qi and Blood Circulation due to Invasion of the Exogenous Pathogenic Factors
Persistent Pain in a Recent Disease or Pain that is Aggravated by Pressure	Excess Condition
Intermittent Pain that is Alleviated by Pressure	Xu Condition

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Sleep

Insomnia with Palpitations and Dizziness	Failure of Blood to Nourish the Heart due to Heart and Spleen Xu
Insomnia with a Restless Mind, and Dream Disturbed Sleep	Hyperactive Heart Fire
Difficulty Falling Asleep due to an Uncomfortable and Empty Sensation in the Stomach or Gastric Discomfort After a Full Meal	Derangement of Stomach Qi Leading to Mental Restlessness
Lethargy Accompanied by Dizziness	Phlegm Damp in the Interior
Half Asleep with General Lassitude	Heart and Kidney Yang Xu

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Menses

Menses of Shortened Cycle, Excessive in Amount, Deep Red in Color, and Thick in Quality	Excess Heat in the Blood
Menses that are Light Colored, Profuse in Amount, and Thin in Quality	Failure of Qi to Command Blood
Prolonged Cycle with Scanty Purplish Dark Discharge or Clots	Stagnation of Blood due to Cold
Thin, Scanty, Light Colored Flow	Blood Xu
Irregular Menstrual Cycle	Disharmony of the Flush and Conception Vessels due to Obstruction of Liver Qi
Premenstrual or Menstrual Distending Pain in the Breasts and Lower Abdomen which Intensifies on Pressure During Menses	Stagnation of Blood due to Cold
Dull Pain in the Lower Abdomen During or After Menses which is Alleviated by Pressure	Qi and Blood Xu