Fi

Question 0

Excess Heat/Fire

Answer 0

Excess yang

Causes:
Hyperactivity of yang Qi transforming into heat/fire
Accumulation of pathos transforming into heat/fire
Excessive emotions transforming into heat/fire

Signs/Sx:
Fever, red face, red eyes, irritability, burning pain, constipation, scanty dark urine
T: red + yellow coat
Specific fire signs (“toxic heat”):
Boils, sore throat, toothache, bleeding gums

Question 1

Internal Heat/Fire

Answer 1

Causes:
Excess yang (diet, LV Qi stag, ext heat patho moving inward)
Yin def causing hyperactivity of yang
Stag of Qi & blood or accumulation of pathos that create heat/fire (incl. food stag)
External heat patho moving inward

Divided into:
Excess heat/fire & deficient heat/fire

Question 2

Deficient Heat/Fire

Answer 2

Deficient yin

Causes:
Yin def. & hyperactivity of fire

Signs/Sx:
Tidal/low grade fever at night, malar flush, night sweating, five-center heat, dry stool, scanty dark yellow urine
P: rapid + thin
T: red w/ little or no coating
Specific deficiency fire signs/Sx:
Boils, sores, ulcers, sore throat, bleeding/swollen gums, toothache

Question 3

Excess of Heart Yang

Answer 3

Causes:
Pathogenic heat or accumulation of phlegm and fire (excess syndrome)
Mental disturbance that has consumed heart yin and heart blood (deficiency syndrome)
Abnormal emotional activities turning into fire (excess syndrome)
Signs/Sx:
Disturbances of the mind- palpitations, irritability, *insomnia (racing mind; difficulty falling asleep), dream-disturbed sleep, talkativeness, hysteria
Rapid pulse- palpitations, *red tongue w/ prickles, (hemorrhages in severe cases)
Flaring-up (or downward movement) of heart fire- *tongue (and mouth) ulcers, *painful tongue tip, dry mouth
Fire going downward to SI- *deep yellow urine, *painful urination (HT -> SI -> UB)
P: rapid + forceful T: red + yellow coat
ALSO: flushed face, constipation, warm body

Question 4

Deficiency of Heart Yang

Answer 4

Causes:
chronic diseases that consume Yang Qi
deficient KD Yang
SP deficiency that produces phlegm
critical stages of acute diseases (sudden collapse of Yang Qi)
Signs/Sx:
(def. of HT yang & HT Qi)- lassitude, dullness, drowsiness, reluctance to speak, low voice, excessive sleep, P: slow + forceless T: pale + white c.
(def. HT yang causing blood stag.)- chilliness and cold limbs, pallor or purplish complexion, palpitations, suffocating feeling/stabbing pain in chest, spontaneous/profuse sweating, P: choppy/irreg. T: purple
(severe cases- minute & slow, or rapid & intermittent pulse)
Can lead to Yang collapse (P: slow, faint)

Question 5

Heart Yin Deficiency

Answer 5

Causes:
excessive mental strain
chronic illness
abnormal emotional activities
excessive fire, esp. in HT & LV
Signs/Sx:
(internal deficiency heat)
five center heat, night sweating, P: rapid + thin T: red w/little or no c.
(yin xu leading to hyperactivity of yang Qi)
mind disturbances, irritability, insomnia (frequent waking up)

Question 6

Heart Blood Deficiency

Answer 6

Causes:
loss of blood
inadequate blood prod.
abnormal emotional activities (consuming blood)
Signs/Sx:
poor mental concentration, poor memory
insomnia (difficulty falling asleep), dream-disturbed sleep, palpitations
pallor
P: thin
T: pale + thin body + thin white coat

Question 7

Heart Blood Stasis/Stagnation

Answer 7

Causes:
insufficient yang Qi (cold)
turbid phlegm obstructing the vessels
blood stagnation somewhere else in body
emotional disturbances (LV Qi stagnation)
Signs/Sx:
stifling or suffocating feeling in chest, palpitations, fright, sharp pain in chest (possibly radiating), cold limbs, sudden profuse sweating leading to coma
P: choppy or minute

Question 8

Lung not Descending/Dispersing

causes, signs/Sx

Answer 8

(Excess cond.)
Causes:
Attack by patho factors (exogenous) on body’s surface or directly on Lung
Blockage of Lung’s vessels by phlegm
Excessive LV Qi & Fire (goes up rebelliously to attack LU)
Pre-condition of def. LU Qi or LU Yin

Signs/Sx:
Stuffy nose, sneezing, itchy throat/cough, absence of perspiration due to stagnant defensive Qi & closed body pores (dispersing fx), edema (descending fx)
P & T: (variable)

Question 9

LU Qi Deficiency

Answer 9

Causes:
Chronic illness
SP & KD deficiency
Irreg. diet
Overexertion

Signs/Sx:
Spontaneous sweating/susceptibility to the common cold (dispersing fx)
Rebellious LU Qi, profuse sputum, SOB, fullness in chest (descending fx)
Coughing, SOB (D&D fx)
Scanty urine, edema (keeping water passageways unobstructed fx)
P: forceless
T: pale + thin white coat

Question 10

LU Yin Deficiency

Answer 10

Causes:
Pathogenic dry heat
Accumulation of phlegm & fire
Emotional disturbance
Overexertion & chronic disease

Signs/Sx:
Dry cough, expectoration w/ scanty sticky sputum, SOB, afternoon fever, night sweating, red cheeks, five-center heat, blood-tinged sputum (severe cases), bleeding
Can lead to dual def. of LU & KD Yin
P: forceless + rapid
T: red + little/no coat

Question 11

Deficiency of SP Qi

Answer 11

Causes:
Improper diet (results in SP's failure to transport nutrients)
Weak body constitution
Chronic illness
Overstrain

Signs/Sx:
Poor digestion, tastelessness in mouth, dizziness (clear yang not rising), gastric/abd. distension, loose stools or diarrhea
Bleeding (SP not controlling blood), hemorrhage
Fatigue, chronic diarrhea, prolapse of rectum & internal organs
P: forceless
T: pale + thin white c. + (swollen, scalloped)

Chronic SP Qi Xu can lead to SP Yang Xu

Question 12

SP Yang Deficiency

Answer 12

Causes:
SP Qi Xu
Diminished life gate fire (Ming Men)

Signs/Sx:
(Brings about internal cold)
*similar to SP Qi Xu w/ add'l COLD SIGNS
Gastric/abd. pain, diarrhea w/ undigested food, pre-dawn diarrhea, edema, fluid retention 
Cold body & limbs, fatigue 
P: forceless
T: pale + (thin) white c.
SP Yang Xu also produces disturbances in water metabolism (see WB pg.56)

Question 13

Stagnation of LV Qi

WB 56-57

Answer 13

Cause:
Emotional disturbances

Signs/Sx:
P: wiry
1) Distending pain along LV/GB meridian- genital pain (feeling of heaviness in testes), lower abd. pain, hypochondriac pain, chest pain, breast pain/distension (nodules), plum pit Qi, HA, eye pain
2) Digestive: SP- diarrhea, poor appetite
ST- constipation, ^ appetite, belching, vomiting
3) HT- insomnia, irritability
(2 & 3 Five Element)
4) Qi stag. -> heat/fire- fever, acne
5) Qi stag. -> blood stag.- purple signs

Question 14

Ascendant hyperactivity of LV Yang

LV Yang rising

Answer 14

(Deficiency pattern)
Causes:

LV Qi stag (stag LV Qi turns into fire & ascends)
Sudden outburst of anger (injures LV & causes LV yang/fire to ascend)
Abnormal emotional activities that stir up LV yang

KD-LV yin deficiency –> hyperactive yang

Signs/Sx:
HA w/ distending feeling, red complexion & eyes, irritability w/ anger, ringing in ears, deafness
LV-KD vacuity- lumbar ache, dry eyes, tinnitus
LU/ST affected- hemoptysis, hematemesis, epistaxis

P: rapid + forceful + wiry
T: red + yellow c. (peeled- yin xu)