《斗门方》治胸膈壅滞，去痰开胃。酒食所伤，用半夏为末，以姜汁和作饼子，用
湿纸包于慢火中煨，令香熟，
水二盏用饼子一块入盐五分，煎一盏温服。
《经验方》治凉物过饱不消，遂成痞嗝，用马牙硝一两淬之，吴茱萸半升陈者，煮
取浓汁，投硝乘热服，良久未转，更进一服，立愈。
《千金方》治胸痹气壅满，心膈不利，枳实二两麸炒为末，无时以清粥饮调下二钱。
唐韦迪《独行方》治卒得胸痛，瘥而复作者，用薤根五斤捣，绞汁饮之立止。
《内经》曰∶诸腹胀大，皆属于热。又曰∶诸湿肿满，皆属脾土。
又曰∶太阴所至为中满霍乱吐下。又云∶腹满 胀，支鬲 胁，下厥上冒，过在太阴
阳明。乃寒湿郁遏也。
又曰∶诸腹胀大，鼓之如鼓，皆属于热。《原病式》云∶气为阳，阳为热，气甚则如是也。
《针经》曰∶夫胀者，皆在于脏腑之外，排脏腑而郭胸胁胀皮肤，故命曰胀。或厥气
在下，荣气留止，寒气逆上，真邪相攻，两气相抟，乃合为胀也。
阴阳应象论曰∶浊气在上，则生 胀。清气在下，则生飧泄。此阴阳反作，病之逆从也。
愚谓胀满只是湿热饮食，劳倦内伤，脾气积滞之所始致，是为胀满。苦积损既久，脾气
日亏，气凝血聚，渐着不行，由胀满而成鼓胀。以其外虽坚满，中空无物，有似于鼓，坚
固难治，俗名单腹胀。以其四肢皆不肿，而惟腹中胀肿如鼓，乃气血结成蛊毒之形，而不
可解释消散，故又名曰蛊。血化为虫，因字之义而命名也。生气通天论曰∶病久则传化，
上下不并，（不通也。）良医弗为，此之谓也。
The *Doumen Fang* treats stagnation and obstruction in the chest and diaphragm, aiming to resolve phlegm and open the stomach qi. For injuries caused by alcohol and improper diet, use Pinelliae Rhizoma (Banxia) ground into powder, mixed with Zingiberis Recens Juice (Jiangzhi) to form cakes. Wrap these cakes in wet paper and roast them over slow fire until fragrant and cooked. Take two cups of water, add one cake and five fen of salt, decoct until reduced to one cup, and take warm.
The *Jingyan Fang* treats blooming and obstruction resulting from indigestion due to excessive consumption of cold foods. Use one liang of Halitum (Maya Xiao) quenched [processed], and half sheng of aged Evodiae Fructus (Wuzhuyu), decoct to obtain a concentrated juice. Pour the Halitum into the hot juice and take while warm. If bowel movement does not resume after a long time, administer another dose; recovery will be immediate.
The *Qianjin Fang* treats chest bi syndrome with qi stagnation and fullness, and unfavorable qi flow in the heart and diaphragm. Use two liang of Aurantii Immaturus Fructus (Zhishi), stir-fried with bran and ground into powder. At any time, take two qian, washed down with clear rice soup.
Tang Dynasty physician Wei Di’s *Duxing Fang* treats sudden onset of chest pain that recurs after remission. Use five jin of Allii Macrostemonis Bulbus (Xie) root, crush it, extract the juice, and drink it; the pain will stop immediately.
The *Neijing* states: "All cases of abdominal distension and enlargement belong to heat." It also states: "All edema and fullness caused by dampness belong to Spleen Earth." Furthermore: "When Taiyin is affected, it leads to middle jiao fullness, Huoluan (cholera-like disorder), vomiting, and diarrhea." It also says: "Abdominal fullness, distension extending to the hypochondrium, lower extremity coldness (Jue), and upper body confusion/malaise, the pathology lies in Taiyin and Yangming. This is due to the depression and constraint of cold-dampness."
It further states: "All cases of abdominal distension and enlargement, where percussion sounds like a drum, belong to heat." The *Yuanbing Shi* states: "Qi belongs to Yang, Yang manifests as heat; when Qi is excessive, such symptoms occur."
The *Zhenjing* states: "Regarding distension (Zhang), all cases reside outside the zang-fu organs, pressing against the organs, expanding the chest and hypochondrium, and swelling the skin, hence named 'distension'." Or, Jueqi (rebellious qi) resides below, Yingqi (nutritive qi) remains stagnant, Coldqi rebels upward, True qi and Pathogenic qi attack each other, the two qi types contend and combine, thus forming distension.
The *Yin-Yang Yingxiang Lun* states: "If turbid qi stays above, distension occurs. If clear qi stays below, sun-xie (diarrhea with undigested food) occurs. This is the reversal of Yin and Yang, representing the deviation of disease."
I believe that distension and fullness are initially caused by damp-heat, dietary irregularities, and internal injury from fatigue and exhaustion, leading to stagnation of Spleen qi, which is termed distension and fullness. If this accumulation and damage persist for a long time, Spleen qi declines daily, qi stagnates and blood coagulates, gradually becoming immobile. From distension and fullness, it evolves into Drum Distension (Guzhang). Because the exterior is hard and full, yet the interior is hollow with no substance, resembling a drum, it is difficult to treat and commonly known as Single Abdominal Distension. Since the four limbs do not swell, but only the abdomen swells like a drum, this represents the shape of Gu poison formed by the结 (knitting/consolidating) of qi and blood, which cannot be resolved or dispersed. Hence, it is also named "Gu" (Poison/Worm). Blood transforms into worms, and the name is derived from the meaning of the character. The *Shengqi Tongtian Lun* states: "When a disease persists, it transmits and transforms; if the upper and lower [qi mechanisms] do not communicate... even a good physician cannot help. This is what is meant."