↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.
Clinical manifestations: A scratchy, sore throat with a tickling urge to cough; fever with mild chills; thick yellow phlegm; thirst and a dry mouth; nasal congestion with yellow mucus; a headache and body aches.
Tongue: Red tip, thin yellow coating. Pulse: Floating and rapid.
Treatment principle: Disperses Wind-Heat, clears Lung Heat and restores the Lung's diffusing and descending functions.
Note: no moxa.
Clinical manifestations: A scratchy, tickly throat itch, not dry or burning; chills more prominent than fever; clear, watery nasal discharge; no thirst; thin white watery phlegm.
Tongue: Normal or slightly pale, thin white moist coating. Pulse: Floating and tight.
Treatment principle: Releases the exterior, disperses Cold and frees the Lungs to stop the cough and itch.
Note: moxa is appropriate.
Clinical manifestations: A parched, tickling throat triggering a dry cough; scanty, sticky phlegm hard to expectorate; a dry nose, mouth and cracked lips; a slight fever and mild wind aversion; thirst with a desire for small sips.
Tongue: Red with a dry surface, thin white or yellow dry coating. Pulse: Floating and rapid, or floating and slightly tense.
Treatment principle: Gently disperses dryness, moistens the Lungs and stops the cough.
Note: no moxa.
4. Dry-Wind
Clinical manifestations: A tickly, scratchy throat triggering a dry cough; dry mouth, nose and throat; scanty sticky sputum hard to expectorate; worse in autumn or dry, windy weather; mild wind aversion with a low-grade fever.
Tongue: Slightly red with a dry surface, thin white dry coating. Pulse: Floating and rapid.
Treatment principle: Dispels Wind, moistens dryness and stops the tickly cough.
Note: no moxa. This site's decks have no Dry-Wind slide — no pattern link is given here.
5. Spleen Deficiency with Dampness
Clinical manifestations: A feeling of a lump or sticky coating in the throat; white, sticky phlegm easily expectorated; abdominal bloating worse after eating; loose, unformed stools; heaviness in the body and limbs; fatigue; poor appetite.
Tongue: Pale, swollen, teeth-marked, white greasy coating, moist. Pulse: Soggy and slow, possibly slippery.
Treatment principle: Tonifies Qi, strengthens the Spleen and drains Dampness.
Note: moxa is appropriate. No standalone Spleen-Deficiency-with-Dampness slide exists on this site's decks — no pattern link is given here.
Clinical manifestations: A dry, tickly throat worse at night; a dry cough with little or no phlegm; night sweats or afternoon warmth; a hoarse voice.
Tongue: Red, dry, thin with cracks, little or no coating. Pulse: Fine and rapid, weak at the right front position.
Treatment principle: Nourishes Lung Yin, clears empty Heat and moistens the throat.
Note: no moxa (Yin deficiency with heat signs).