wk10 - pulses by strength - 3 forceful & 3 forceless

Question 1

How many pulses are primarily defined by force (or strength)?

Answer 1

6 pulses primarily defined by force / strength:
· 3 are excess
· 3 are vacuous

Question 2

Name the 6 pulses primarily defined by force (or strength).

Answer 2

·  Replete
·  Surging
·  Tight
·  Vacuous
·  Faint (or Minute)
·  Weak

Question 3

Replete Pulse – description

Answer 3

· only excess, forceful, hard
· large
· long
· arrives & departs exuberantly

Question 4

Replete Pulse – pathology

Answer 4

· excess pathogen in a healthy patient (so in a sense, not pathological)
· could be excess cold or excess heat

Question 5

Replete Pulse – image

Answer 5

· depiction is of a big battle in a healthy person
· 4 tall pairs of zig zags that pass through top/middle/bottom level
· can fill in
· longer than cun/guan/chi positions

Question 6

Surging Pulse – description

Answer 6

· large & loose
· arrives large & leaves long
· arrives exuberantly but leaves without oomph
· arrives with force but leaves without

Question 7

Surging Pulse – pathology

Answer 7

· strong pathogen in a strong patient (though a replete pulse would be an even stronger patient with a stronger pathogen)
· 4 bigs / Yang Ming channel syndrome

Question 8

Surging Pulse – image

Answer 8

· depiction is of waves
· 4 tall waves that pass through top/middle/bottom level
· can fill in
· fit within cun/gun/chi positions

Question 9

Tight Pulse – description

Answer 9

· ropy in nature
· slow
· forceful
· side-to-side motion (think of it as a vibrating or wiggling side-to-side under fingers, in addition to the usual up & down)

Question 10

Tight Pulse – pathology

Answer 10

· cold pain (interior cold)

· spasming, cramping

Question 11

Tight Pulse – image

Answer 11

· draw at middle level

· 2 squiggly lines crossing over one another in no regular pattern

Question 12

Vacuous Pulse – description

Answer 12

·  large, floating
·  slow
·  empty
·  forceless
·  has a vessel, but nothing in it
·  distinct from scallion because it's SLOW

Question 13

Vacuous Pulse – pathology

Answer 13

· Blood & Qi Vacuity

· Summerheat damage (e.g. sun stroke)

Question 14

Vacuous Pulse – image

Answer 14

· draw at superficial level
· 4 beats, but slightly shorter than the cun/guan/chi positions
· with or without dots

Question 15

Faint / Minute Pulse – description

Answer 15

· most vacuous of all the pulses that has vacuous as part of its essence (therefore most deficient of all the deficient pulses)
· sometimes present, sometimes not (hard to find, comes & goes quickly)
· forceless
· extremely fine
· extremely slack (must say slack)
· extreme pulse

Question 16

Faint / Minute Pulse – pathology

Answer 16

· debility of Qi & Blood
· depletion of Qi & Blood
· collapse

(EXTREME pulse – often accompanied by extreme diarrhea. think of this as the cholera pulse)

Question 17

Faint / Minute Pulse – image

Answer 17

· draw at middle level as a dotted line with 4 beats

Question 18

Weak Pulse – description

Answer 18

· fine, small
· forceless
· only felt with deep or heavy pressure

Question 19

Weak Pulse – pathology

Answer 19

· debility of Qi & Blood

· chronic illness

Question 20

Weak Pulse – image

Answer 20

· draw at deepest level

· not much contour