Category: Traditional Medical Texts
(chapter36)Overthinking Damaging Spleen, Phlegm-Dampness Disturbing Heart
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Case Record of Madam Li Beisan While visiting Mr. Li Beisan’s residence, his wife suddenly fell ill. Madam Li was known for her poetry, painting, and exceptional embroidery skills, with a lively, confident personality and eloquent speech. During our conversation in the parlor, other officials were playing a card game similar to poker, which I…
(chapter35)Complex cold-Heat Pattern: Stomach Heat with Spleen Cold
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Here’s the translation with key TCM terms contextualized for international readers: Medical Case Record from Shaanxi Jingyang County The incident occurred in the household of Magistrate Zhou Beisan of Jingyang County. His mother-in-law (traditionally honored as “Taishui”) and widowed sister-in-law (his wife’s elder brother’s widow), two generations of widows, both relied on Magistrate Zhou’s support.…
(chapter34)Parotitis(Mumps)
In early autumn, the second daughter-in-law of Xiao Mei’s family suddenly developed severe neck swelling. The family summoned a physician who diagnosed it as “Jueyin Luoli” (lymphatic tuberculosis along the liver meridian in TCM terminology). He prescribed topical medicinal paste and internal herbal formulas to regulate liver qi. However, after five days of (used in…
(chapter33)Summerheat Stagnation Mistreated with Warming Herbs
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In the spring of 1736 CE (Bingchen year under the Qing dynasty’s Qianlong Emperor), I arrived in Shaanxi province as a reserve official. Mr. Shen Xiaomei, the governor of Xi’an and a former senior advisor in the imperial cabinet, invited me to assist with administrative duties during his transitional period. We worked closely together, and…
(chapter32)Liver Stagnation with Rebellious Qi: Pulse-Symptom Mismatch
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Case Study of Liver Pulse Prognosis The patient was the father of my clansman Wang Danwen (called “Maocai” – an imperial examination title equivalent to scholar). I always treated him with the respect due to an elder. In his youth, he had been an astute businessman, particularly skilled in profit calculations (ancient Chinese referred to…
(chapter31)Concurrent Postpartum Chest Pain, Lactation Phlegm Syndrome, and Liver Damage from Rage
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Case 1: Postpartum Chest Pain Misdiagnosis My sister-in-law (my wife’s younger sister) married the eldest son of Mr. Zhang, a military examination candidate (wǔjǔrén). After giving birth, she developed severe chest and stomach pain. During episodes, she couldn’t eat, had rapid breathing, and a dry mouth. Her father-in-law consulted multiple doctors, all of whom diagnosed…
(chapter30)Postpartum Abdominal Pain
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Mr. Meng, a close friend of mine, sought my help when his wife—a woman in her forties—developed severe abdominal pain with a palpable mass shortly after childbirth. Pulse Diagnosis Findings Upon examining her pulse, I detected: An unusually forceful and rapid rhythm Tense quality beneath fingertips (Note: In TCM terminology, this “Shi Da Er Jian”…
Wind Phlegm Disturbing the Mind Causing Confusion
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Medical Case Study: Acute Neuroinflammation Treated with Traditional Chinese Medicine In our village, Mrs. Duan, a woman in her twenties, suddenly developed alarming symptoms: 1,Mental confusion 2,Full-body tremors with cold sweats 3,Lockjaw preventing speech 4,Severe abdominal distension and pain causing agonized writhing Her family suspected “evil spirit possession” and summoned a local shaman who: 1,Conducted…
Yin-Type Abscess on Back (Chronic Ulcer)
A merchant from another province (name unknown), working as a pawnshop manager, developed a severe abscess on his back after autumn. Despite multiple medical interventions, the condition persisted. His younger brother arrived at my residence in a carriage, performing a kowtow (a traditional gesture of respect involving kneeling and touching the forehead to the ground)…
Common Cold with Internal Heat and Wind-Cold Attack
In the cultural circles of 19th-century Beijing, a story unfolded between Ma Jieqiao, an official from the Ministry of Rites (responsible for state rituals), and a renowned opera performer named A’Er: As autumn arrived, A’Er contracted malaria with distinct symptoms: frequent chills (“excessive cold” in traditional Chinese medicine terminology) accompanied by rare fever episodes, leaving…
