凡小儿在月内有病者,皆胎毒也,并治其母。
小儿月内,肠胃甚佹,气血未充,若有微疾,不可妄施补
泻,恐脏腑一伤,将贻患终身,或致夭命矣,可不戒哉!如不得
已而用汤丸,毌伐天和,中病即止,又不可过剂也。乳母服药,
必别择乳母,而后可补可泄也。若蓐母(1)自乳,又不可乱投汤
药,盖产后之妇,气血甚虚,有补无泻。茍儿有热病,而用凉
药,则犯产后之禁,必害其母;如用温补,则反加小儿之热,又
害其子。医者人之司命,而可妄为乎?必须盟斟酌谨慎,勿损阴德。
凡小儿才生即死者,急看儿口中悬痈愕上,必有泡塞住,即以
手指摘破其泡,速以软绢拭血令净,若血入咽即死。
凡小儿初生气绝不能啼者,必因难产,或因冒寒所致。急以
绵絮重裹其儿,抱于怀中,不可便断脐带。却把胞衣置鋾(2)中,
向炭火上煮之,又作油炷点着,于脐带上往来燎之,须臾热气由
脐中入腹,便能啼,方可洗浴断带。若不如此急救之,而先断带
者,多死不治。
凡小儿初生下,被寒风所吹。鼻塞,服药不得者,用天南星
为末。生姜自然汁谓成膏,贴囱门上,自愈。
凡小儿生后,或月内,或百日 气急喘满,目闭眼赤哆多,
神困呵欠,遍身壮热,小便赤涩,大便不通,时复惊烦,此胎热也。
因母平日嗜食辛甘热物,贪服暖药而致,用凉惊丸,黄连解毒汤
治之。
Any illness occurring in an infant within one month after birth is attributed to fetal toxin (Tai Du), and the mother must be treated concurrently.
Within the first month of life, an infant's gastrointestinal tract is extremely fragile, and Qi and Blood are not yet sufficient. If minor ailments occur, tonification or purgation should not be administered recklessly. Fear that damaging the Zang-Fu organs will lead to lifelong complications or even premature death; how can one not be vigilant! If decoctions or pills are inevitably used to attack pathogens without disrupting the harmony of Heaven and Human (Zhong He), treatment should cease once the disease is cured, and dosage must never be excessive. When a nursing mother takes medication, another wet nurse must be selected first before any tonifying or purging measures are applied to the biological mother. If the puerpera (postpartum woman) nurses the infant herself, herbal decoctions must not be prescribed indiscriminately. This is because postpartum women suffer from severe deficiency of Qi and Blood, where tonification is indicated but purgation is contraindicated. If the infant suffers from a heat syndrome and the mother is given cooling herbs, it violates postpartum prohibitions and will harm the mother; if warming and tonifying herbs are given, it will exacerbate the infant's heat, thereby harming the child. Physicians hold the fate of human lives in their hands; how can they act recklessly? One must deliberate carefully and cautiously, avoiding actions that would diminish one's hidden virtue (Yin De).
In cases where an infant dies immediately upon birth, urgently inspect the area above the frenulum (Xuan Yong) in the infant's mouth. There will likely be a bubble obstructing the airway. Immediately puncture the bubble with a finger and swiftly wipe away the blood with soft silk cloth. If blood enters the pharynx, death will result.
If an infant is born with weak breath and cannot cry, it is due to difficult labor or exposure to cold. Urgently wrap the infant heavily in cotton wadding and hold them close to your body. Do not cut the umbilical cord immediately. Instead, place the placenta in a pot and boil it over charcoal fire. Then, make an oil wick, ignite it, and pass it back and forth over the umbilical cord to cauterize it. After a moment, warmth will enter the abdomen through the navel, enabling the infant to cry. Only then may the infant be bathed and the cord severed. If this emergency measure is not taken and the cord is cut first, most infants will die and cannot be saved.
If an infant is exposed to cold wind shortly after birth, resulting in nasal congestion and inability to take oral medication, use powder prepared from Rhizoma Pinelliae Preparatum (Tian Nan Xing). Mix it with fresh juice of Zingiberis Rhizoma Recens (Sheng Jiang) to form a paste, and apply it to the anterior fontanelle (Xuan Men). The condition will resolve spontaneously.
If an infant, whether shortly after birth or within the first month, presents with rapid breathing, wheezing, and chest fullness; closed eyes with redness and excessive discharge; lethargy with frequent yawning; high fever throughout the body; dark, scanty, and painful urination; constipation; and occasional fright and irritability, this is Fetal Heat Syndrome (Tai Re). This is caused by the mother's habitual consumption of pungent, sweet, and hot foods, and her indulgence in warm-natured medicines. Treat with Liang Jing Wan (Cooling Calm Pill) and Huang Lian Jie Du Tang (Coptis Decoction for Resolving Toxicity).