↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.
Clinical manifestations: Intensely painful, burning ulcers on the tip of the tongue with red, raised edges; mental restlessness, anxiety and insomnia; thirst with a preference for cold drinks; a flushed red face.
Tongue: Red with a distinctly redder tip and a dry yellow coating. Pulse: Rapid, forceful.
Treatment principle: Clear Heart-Fire and guide it downward through the Small Intestine channel, draining the Excess-Heat driving the tongue ulcers.
Nourish Yin to balance Fire
Note: no moxa. Direct match with
Heart-Fire blazing — "mouth and tongue ulcers" is listed as one of its key diagnostic symptoms.
Clinical manifestations: Ulcers on the gums, lips and inner cheeks; sharp burning pain; foul breath; intense thirst; constipation.
Tongue: Red with a thicker red centre and a thick yellow coating. Pulse: Rapid, Slippery, full.
Treatment principle: Clear Stomach-Heat and cool the Blood while nourishing Yin, addressing the source of the burning ulcers along the Stomach channel's facial pathway.
Clinical manifestations: Recurrent, shallow ulcers with only mild burning pain; a dry mouth that worsens at night; night sweats; heat sensations in the palms and soles; fatigue brought on by overwork.
Tongue: Red, thin, dry, with cracks and little coating. Pulse: Fine, Rapid, weak on deep pressure.
Treatment principle: Nourish Yin to anchor Yang and clear the deficiency-Heat rising upward to the mouth.
Clinical manifestations: Sunken, slow-healing ulcers that ooze a yellow fluid; a heavy body sensation; a sticky taste; bad breath; bloating and nausea; loose, incomplete bowel movements.
Tongue: Red, swollen, with a yellow greasy coating that is difficult to scrape off. Pulse: Slippery, Rapid.
Treatment principle: Clear Heat and drain Dampness while regulating Qi in the Middle Burner, resolving the sunken, weeping quality of these ulcers.
Note: no moxa. Direct name match with
Damp-Heat in the Stomach — shares the sticky taste, heaviness and nausea of a Stomach obstructed by Damp-Heat.
Clinical manifestations: Pale, non-healing ulcers with little or no pain; cold hands and feet; loose stools; soreness in the lower back; fatigue and weak digestion.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, puffy with tooth marks and a white slippery coating. Pulse: Deep, weak, Slow.
Treatment principle: Warm Yang and disperse Cold to restore the digestive fire and anchor the floating Heat that is keeping these ulcers from healing.
Note: moxa applicable. Matches
Kidney- and Spleen-Yang deficiency — the same constitutional Yang-deficiency-with-Cold picture (backache, cold, loose stools, Deep-Weak pulse).
6. Blood Stagnation
Clinical manifestations: A stabbing, fixed pain at the ulcer site; a dark, purplish discoloration and dusky lips; pain that worsens at night during rest; chronic, non-healing sores.
Tongue: Purple or dusky with stasis spots and distended sublingual veins. Pulse: Choppy or Wiry.
Treatment principle: Invigorate Blood and dispel stasis while moving Qi, relieving the fixed pain and discoloration of a long-standing sore.
Note: no moxa. Matches
Liver-Blood stasis — purple lips and a purple or dark complexion are listed manifestations, and its clinical tip is that stabbing pain with a purple tongue is enough to diagnose this pattern.