Fire diseases:introduction of its pathological reasons,common syndromes and various syndromes.
✵Fire diseases:The fire disease or fire syndrome is a disease caused by the harm and hurt from the ministerial fire; it is also known as huǒ zhèng (fire syndrome). Fire as a pathogenic factor is known as pathogenic fire (huǒ xié). Various types of fire diseases are introduced.
Fire diseases.
There are two main types of fire in the human body, which are recorded in ancient classical works as the monarch fire (jūn huǒ) and the ministerial fire (xiàng huǒ).
The ancient classical works Nei Jing (the Internal Canon) recorded that "The monarch fire is bright, and the ministerial fire is in its position".
However, the ministerial fire also does harm. If the ministerial fire is very strong, it will hurt the original Qi and can fry and decoct the geniune yin; if the yin is deficient, one will be sick, and if the yin is exhausted, one will lose life, and all of these are caused by the ministerial fire.
In ancient TCM system, the fire disease is mainly referred to as a disease caused by the harm and hurt from the ministerial fire. The ancient classical works Nei Jing (the Internal Canon) recorded that "the strong fire eats qi, the qi eats the lesser fire."
Ancient herbalist Li Dongyuan states in his famous works Pi Wei Lun (the Treatise on the Spleen and Stomach) that "the ministerial fire hurts the genuine qi. The fire and genuine qi are incompatible; one wins and the other fails."
In modern TCM terms, the fire syndrome mainly refers to a disease from exogenous pathogenic fire and heat, dominance of Yang-heat in the interior; its main symptoms and manifestations are fever, thirst, searing heat in the chest and abdomen, red face, constipation, and yellow urine, red tongue, tongue coating is yellowish and dry, pulse is rapid and surging, etc.
Fire as a pathogenic factor is known as pathogenic fire (huǒ xié). As a pathological manifestation of intense heat, it presents as fever, thirst, searing heat in chest and abdomen, red face, constipation, and yellow urine, red tongue, tongue coating is yellowish and dry, pulse is rapid and surging, etc.
Internal reasons: internal reasons vary, mainly including emotional stress, anger, worrying, sorrow and grieved, excessive joy, drunken on a full stomach, sexual strain (exhaustion due to sexual indulgence), over functional activity of Zang-fu viscera, etc.
Exogenous reasons: there are exogenous pathogenic factors, such as working at high temperature, affected by heat climate, burning of fire, take much spicy and pungent food, stagnation of pathogenic cold and dampness.
External symptoms: symptoms varies to different fire syndromes, mainly are blurring of vision and convulsion, counterflows and upward flowing, various vexation and mania, pain and frightened, red face and red eyes, perturbed and vexed, thirst and fond of cool drink, constipation or pass defecation with sticky dregs, short and reddish urine, red tongue and yellow tongue coating, the pulse is rapid and full, or observed coma and delirious speech (wild talks), mania and uneasy, sores and ulcers, reddish swollen(inflammation), thermalgia, hematemesis, hemorrhinia, hematuria, hematochezia, etc.
There are various fire diseases, mainly including fire syndromes of the five Zang-viscera, fire syndromes of the triple energizers, syndromes of deficiency-fire and excess-fire, Yin-fire syndrome, stagnated fire syndrome, dryness-fire syndrome, and damp-fire syndrome. These fire syndromes are introduced.
Fire syndromes of five Zang-viscera:
The fire syndromes of the five Zang-viscera include liver-fire syndrome, heart-fire syndrome, spleen-fire syndrome, kidney-fire syndrome, lung-fire syndrome, etc. These fire syndromes of the five Zang-viscera are introduced:
Liver-fire syndrome: there is heat under the muscle and above the bone; it is fire of the liver, fullness and stuffiness in arms and legs, constipation, having a cramp (have a twisted muscle), many anger and is often frightened (scared), tiredness of muscle and tendon, cannot get up from bed.
Heart-fire syndrome: there is heat under the skin and hairs, and above the muscle, it is fire of the heart; with other symptoms including vexation, heartburn (heartache), feverish palms (heat in the center of the palm), retching.
Spleen-fire syndrome:there is no heat when pressed down lightly or heavily, but heat when pressed down moderately, heat is in the muscle, it is the fire of the spleen, with other symptoms including slothfulness (indolence and laziness) and somnolence, flaccidity of limbs (flaccidity of arms and legs), does not want to move, etc.
Kidney-fire syndrome: there is no heat when pressed down lightly, it is very hot when pressed down to the bones; it is the fire of the kidney, with other symptoms including the sensation of bones like being eaten or bitten by worms, bones turn weak due to heat and could not support physical activity, also cannot get up from bed.
Lung-fire syndrome: there is heat when pressed down lightly, heat is in the skin and hairs, it is the fire of the lungs.
Fire syndromes of the triple energizers:
The fire syndromes of the triple energizers include fire syndrome in the upper energizer, fire syndrome in the middle energizer, and fire syndrome in the lower energizer etc. These fire syndromes of the triple energizers are introduced:
Fire in the upper energizer: if the pathogenic fire is in the upper energizer, there is lung atrophy (consumptive lung disease) due to chronic cough, or oral abscess (aphthae, boils growing in the mouth and on the tongue), swelling of eyes and reddish eyes, swelling and pain of head and neck, etc.
Fire in the middle energizer: if the pathogenic fire is in the middle energizer, there is constipation and hard stool, or dysphoria in the chest and diaphragm, poor appetite, etc.
Fire in the lower energizer: if the pathogenic fire is in the lower energizer, there is hematuria (the presence of blood in the urine) and dysuric stranguria, or hot urination, and urine is reddish, constipation, etc.
Syndromes of deficiency-fire and excess-fire:
The syndromes of deficiency-fire and excess-fire include Syndrome of excess-fire, syndrome of deficiency-fire. These syndromes of deficiency-fire and excess-fire are introduced:
Syndrome of excess-fire: the heat from excess-fire affection makes one feel thirsty and want to drink water, day and night without interruption, constipation, and the excrement (stool) is hard. And in cases of excess-fire, there are cases of hectic fever at 15 to 17 pm, there are cases of diarrhea too.
Syndrome of deficiency-fire: the heat from deficiency-fire affection makes one have a hectic fever at night, dryness in the mouth but no desire to drink water, and no constipation. And in cases of deficiency-fire, there are cases of fever at day and night, there are cases of constipation too.
In general, there are five types of deficiency-fire syndrome: fire syndrome of Qi-deficiency, internal injury from overstrain, fever, and lack of physical strength; fire syndrome of blood-deficiency, after loss of blood, the Yin phase turns worse; fire syndrome of Yang strong, when anything crops up she or he turns annoying and laggard, heart-fire turns cauterizing; fire syndrome of Yin-deficiency, kidney-Yin is insufficient, hyperactivity of kidney-Yang due to over sexual indulgence; and fire syndrome of Yang-deficiency, for weak and aged persons, or after chronic disease, the vitality is exhausted from vomiting and diarrhea, heat in the upper and cold in the lower.
Yin-fire syndrome:
The Yin-fire syndrome is introduced:
Yin-fire syndrome: the Yin-fire syndrome is also known as syndrome of Yin-fire, or yīn huǒ, the syndrome of Yin-fire is from theory of ancient herbalist Lǐ Dōng Yuán, he states in the works Pi Wei Lun (the Treatise on the Spleen and Stomach) that "the genuine qi of spleen and stomach is deficient and weak, ...thus the Yin-fire could subjugate the spleen.", with symptoms including dyspenea and panting for breath, fever and dysphoria, the pulse is surging and large, and there is cephalalgia (headache).
The progress of the disease: Herbalist Lǐ Dōng Yuán explained that "the spleen and stomach are both deficient and weak, ...great deficiency of the Rong blood (the ying blood)... Yin-fire turns flourishing, suffering day by day, and the blood and Qi turn deficient...", and he summarized it briefly as "the latent fire in Yin blood."
Stagnated fire syndromes:
There are three types of stagnated fire syndrome, these stagnated fire syndromes are introduced:
One is there is endogenous heat in past, affected by exogenous pathogenic wind and cold, the interspaces of skin and muscles is closed and turns stagnated fire;
There is rage and anger but not broke out since past, or fail of plan and considering, the liver wind is obstructed and develops stagnated fire;
There is deficiency of spleen but taking cold food, Yang Qi is restrained in the spleen, fever in four limbs (fever or heat in arms and hands, feet and legs), and burning in the hand when touching the skin, and develops stagnated fire.
Dryness-fire syndrome and damp-fire syndrome:
There are syndromes of dryness-fire and damp-fire, these fire syndromes are introduced:
Dryness-fire syndrome: the dryness-fire syndrome, it aches but does not swell, muscle and tendon contract and it aches, one feels thirst, and there is constipation.
Damp-fire syndrome: the damp-fire syndrome, it swells but does not ache, not thirsty, and defecation is sliding (or there is diarrhea).
Incurable fire syndromes.
There are incurable fire syndromes; these fire syndromes are incurable.
References:
1.Fire diseases:introduction of its pathological reasons,common syndromes and relevant syndromes.
✵Fire diseases:The fire disease or fire syndrome is a disease caused by the harm and hurt from the ministerial fire; it is also known as huǒ zhèng (fire syndrome). Fire as a pathogenic factor is known as pathogenic fire (huǒ xié). Various types of fire diseases are introduced.
