↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.
Clinical manifestations: High fever worsening at night; delirium with incoherent speech; cold hands and feet despite burning heat; burning hot skin; severe thirst.
Tongue: Crimson, stiff or shortened, yellow dry coat. Pulse: Fine and rapid.
Treatment principle: Clears intense Heat from the Heart-Pericardium, opens the orifices and revives consciousness.
Note: no moxa.
Clinical manifestations: Mental restlessness and agitation; copious thick yellow sticky phlegm; chest oppression; a flushed red face and eyes; gurgling throat sounds.
Tongue: Red, swollen, red prickly tip, thick yellow greasy coat. Pulse: Slippery and rapid.
Treatment principle: Clears Heart Fire and transforms Phlegm, calms the agitated mind, relieves chest fullness.
Note: no moxa.
Clinical manifestations: Mental dullness rather than agitation; a heavy-headed feeling as if the head is wrapped; rattling or gurgling throat sounds; chest stuffiness and nausea; sluggish thinking.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, thick white greasy coat, often stiff. Pulse: Slippery, like rolling beads.
Treatment principle: Transforms Phlegm, dries Dampness, opens the Heart orifices and restores mental clarity.
Note: no moxa.
4. Heat in the Ying Level
Clinical manifestations: Fever worsening at night; confused or delirious speech; mental restlessness and insomnia; faint reddish skin rashes; thirst.
Tongue: Deep crimson, dry with little or no coating, possible red prickles. Pulse: Fine and rapid.
Treatment principle: Cools nutritive-level Heat, nourishes depleted Yin, calms the Heart Spirit and anchors the mind.
Note: no moxa. This site's decks have no warm-disease Heat-in-the-Ying-level slide — no pattern link is given here.
5. Turbid Phlegm Blocking the Orifices
Clinical manifestations: Mental confusion and foggy thinking, distinct from the agitation above; a heavy-headed sensation; gurgling phlegm sounds; slurred speech or difficulty speaking; chest tightness.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, teeth-marked, thick white greasy-slippery coat. Pulse: Slippery, often wiry.
Treatment principle: Scours Phlegm forcefully, opens the sensory orifices, regulates Qi and resolves turbidity.
Note: no moxa. No standalone Turbid-Phlegm-blocking-the-Orifices slide exists distinct from Phlegm-misting-the-Mind above — no pattern link is given here.
Clinical manifestations: Profuse cold sweating on the forehead; ice-cold limbs; blue-purple lips and nailbeds; extremely weak, barely perceptible breathing; an ashen-white or grey complexion; profound confusion or near-unconsciousness.
Tongue: Very pale or bluish-purple, short, flaccid, wet thin white slippery coat. Pulse: Minute, hidden, or knotted, barely perceptible.
Treatment principle: Rescues devastated Yang from collapse, restores consciousness urgently, stops profuse sweating, anchors the spirit.
Note: MEDICAL EMERGENCY — this is a collapse pattern needing immediate emergency care alongside any acupuncture. Strong moxa is traditionally indicated.