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Damp-heat dysentery complicated by red and white pus and blood, abdominal pain with tenesmus (urgency and straining during defecation), and nausea upon smelling food is named "Jinkou Dysentery" (Dysentery with inability to eat). It is appropriate to use Shengjiang Xiexin Tang (Ginger Decoction to Drain the Epigastrium) added with Shi Lian Rou (Lotus Seed Endosperm), Wu Mei (Mume Fruit), Bai Shao (White Peony Root), etc. This employs bitter and acrid flavors to drain and descend [pathogenic factors].

Whenever dysentery is termed Jinkou Dysentery, it is considered a most critical condition. The common saying that "diarrhea or dysentery where one cannot eat will not be fatal" is indeed true. However, there are distinctions between deficiency-cold and excess-heat patterns. If the dysenteric discharge is pale and clear, thirst in the mouth is slight, the tongue coating is white, the pulse is soft, and there is no significant fever, yet vomiting and nausea occur after eating, this belongs to deficiency-cold. It is appropriate to use the ginger and Coptis Chinensis Rhizoma (Huanglian, 黄连) from Xiexin Tang for their bitter and acrid properties to unblock and descend; Ren Shen (Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma) and Gan Cao (Licorice Root) for their sweet and warm properties to nourish the stomach; adding Wu Mei and Bai Shao for their sour astringent properties to restrain the Liver; and Shi Lian Rou for its bitter and cold property to consolidate Yin. Furthermore, possessing bitter, acrid, sweet, and sour flavors avoids the risk of gastric rejection (vomiting immediately after ingestion). If the dysenteric discharge is thick, turbid, and foul-smelling, the tongue coating is yellow, there is thirst, the pulse is slippery or rapid, fever is present, pain is severe, and nausea occurs upon smelling food, this belongs to excess-heat. It is appropriate to use Huang Qin (Scutellaria Root) and Huang Lian for their bitter and cold properties to descend rebellious Qi; Bai Shao and Qin Pi (Ailanthus Bark) to harmonize the Liver; Shan Zha (Hawthorn Fruit) and Hou Po (Magnolia Bark) to relieve stagnation; Da Huang (Rhubarb Root and Rhizome) and Mang Xiao (Mirabilite) to purge accumulated matter; Che Qian Zi (Plantago Seed) and Chi Fu Ling (Red Poria) to separate the water passages. Thus, when accumulation and stagnation are removed and pathogenic fire recedes, the dysentery will naturally cease.

Damp-heat dysentery complicated by five-colored discharge, abdominal pain with tenesmus, anorexia, mental fatigue, and a wiry pulse is named "Five-Colored Dysentery." It is appropriate to use Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang (Tonify the Middle and Augment the Qi Decoction) by Li Dongyuan, added with Yu Liang Shi (Limonitum), Bai Shao, Fu Ling (Poria), Ze Xie (Alisma Rhizome), etc. This aims to raise the clear Yang and drain turbid Yin.

Whenever dysentery involves five colors, the pathology affects the Five Zang Organs. Moreover, reduced appetite and a wiry pulse further manifest the image of Spleen-Stomach deficiency. Therefore, Bu Zhong Yi Qi Tang is used to raise Clear Yang, while Fu Ling and Ze Xie are added to descend damp-turbidity, and Yu Liang Shi is used to stop diarrhea and dysentery. When Yang rises and Yin descends, the dysentery can be arrested.

Damp-heat dysentery changing from red to white, gradually transforming into diarrhea, indicates the transmission of pathogenic factors from the Zang organs to the Fu organs. It is appropriate to use Zhenren Yangzang Tang (True Person's Nourishing the Viscera Decoction) to warm and astringe to stop dysentery.

When dysentery changes from red to white and then transforms into diarrhea, this signifies the pathogen moving from the Zang to the Fu organs, shifting from severe to mild, which is a sign of impending recovery. At this stage, there is no longer any accumulation or stagnation. Therefore, using Zhenren Yangzang Tang to astringe the intestines and stop diarrhea is the precise and appropriate treatment.