↑ reinforcing ↓ reducing ⊥ even method.
1. Cold Invading the Channels, Joints and Muscles
Clinical manifestations: Fingers or toes turning white, then blue-purple, on exposure to cold; sharp, stabbing pain or numbness in the digits during an attack; an icy-cold sensation in the affected areas; symptoms brought on by cold and eased by warmth; a strong aversion to cold generally.
Tongue: Pale with a thin white, moist coating. Pulse: Tight, often also Wiry.
Treatment principle: Warm the channels, disperse Cold, nourish Blood and unblock the vessels, restoring circulation to the cold digits.
Nourish Blood, unblock vessels
Note: moxa throughout. No deck on this site has a channel/joint Cold-invasion category framed around the extremities, so no pattern link is given here.
2. Qi and Blood Deficiency
Clinical manifestations: Chronically cold, pale fingers and toes; persistent fatigue; a pale complexion; dizziness; a poor appetite; numbness or tingling in the limbs.
Tongue: Pale, may be thin or show tooth marks, with a thin white coating. Pulse: Fine, weak, lacking force.
Treatment principle: Tonify Qi and Blood and strengthen the Spleen, building the reserves needed to warm and nourish the extremities.
Note: moxa applicable. No deck on this site combines a generic Qi and Blood deficiency pattern, so no pattern link is given here.
3. Kidney-Yang Deficiency
Clinical manifestations: A deep, persistent coldness that warmth does not relieve; an aching low back and knees; frequent nighttime urination; fatigue and low spirits.
Tongue: Pale, puffy and tender with tooth marks and a wet white coating. Pulse: Deep, Slow, weak, especially at the rear (Kidney) position.
Treatment principle: Tonify Kidney-Yang and warm the Gate of Life Fire, expelling the deep internal Cold at the root of the coldness.
Note: moxa applicable. Direct match with
Kidney-Yang deficiency — same core presentation (backache, cold, clear urination, Pale-Deep pulse) and the same base tonification point set.
4. Blood Deficiency with Disharmony of Liver and Spleen
Clinical manifestations: Episodes triggered by emotional stress or frustration; mood swings or irritability; a pale complexion; numbness or tingling; fatigue with loose stools and a poor appetite; dizziness or blurred vision.
Tongue: Pale, thin, especially pale at the sides, with a thin white, slightly dry coating. Pulse: Overall deficient, Wiry at the left middle position, weak at the right middle position.
Treatment principle: Soothe Liver-Qi, nourish Blood, strengthen the Spleen and harmonize digestion.
Nourish Blood, tonify Spleen
Note: this site's closest candidate, "Rebellious Liver-Qi invading the Spleen," is framed around alternating constipation and diarrhea with no Blood-deficiency signs (no pallor, dizziness, or numbness), so no pattern link is given here.
5. Qi and Blood Stagnation
Clinical manifestations: Fixed, stabbing pain in the fingers or toes; a dark, purplish skin colour; episodes triggered by stress; irritability or mood swings; distension or pain in the chest and ribs.
Tongue: Dark purple with stasis spots, distended sublingual veins. Pulse: Wiry, Choppy.
Treatment principle: Invigorate Blood, dispel stasis, move Qi and open the chest, alleviating the fixed pain and discoloration.
Invigorate Blood, move Qi
Note: no moxa. Matches
Liver-Blood stasis — purple nails, purple lips and a purple or dark complexion, plus a shared Wiry pulse and the same SP-10 point for moving Blood.