惊风一证,从来谬认,盖小儿初生,以及童幼,肌肉筋骨脏腑血脉,俱未充长。阳则有
余,
阴则不足,不比七尺之躯,阴阳交盛也。惟阴不足,阳有余,故身内易至于生热。热甚则
生痰生风生惊,亦所恒有,设当日直以四字立名,曰热痰风惊。则后人不炫,因四字不便立
名,乃节去二字,以惊字领头,风字煞尾,使后人不能解,遂以为奇特之病。且谓此病有八
候∶以其头摇手痉也,而立抽掣之名;以其卒口噤脚挛急也,而立目斜心乱搐搦之名;以其
脊强背反也,而立角弓反张之名,相传既久,不知其妄造,遇见此等证出,无不以为奇特。
不知小儿之腠理未密,易于感冒风寒,风寒中人,必先入太阳经,太阳之脉起于目内 ,上
额交巅,入络脑,还出别下项夹脊抵腰中,是以病则经脉强,因经脉牵强,则生抽掣搐搦角
弓反张。种种名目,而用金石药镇坠,外邪深入脏腑,千中千死,万中万死,间有体坚证轻
得愈者。又诧为再造奇功,遂至各守专门,虽日杀数儿,不知其罪。如方书有云∶小儿八岁
以前无伤寒,此等糊语,竟出自高明,偏足为惊风之说树帜,曾不思小儿肌肉柔脆,不耐
风寒,初传入太阳一经,早已身强多汗,筋脉牵动,人事昏沉,势已极于本经,汤药乱投,
死亡踵接,何由见其传经耶。此所以误言小儿无伤寒也,不知小儿易于外感,易于发热,伤
寒为独多,世称为惊风者即是也。小儿伤寒,要在三日内即愈为贵,若待经尽方解,必不能
耐矣。又刚痉无汗,柔痉有汗,小儿刚痉少,柔痉多,世医见其汗出不止,神昏不醒,往往
以慢惊风证为名,而用参、附、 、术等药,闭其腠理,热邪不得外越,亦为大害。所以凡
治小儿之热,但当彻其出表,不肯引其入里也,仲景原有桂枝,若舍而不用,从事东垣内
伤为治,毫厘千里,最宜详慎。又新产妇人,去血过多,阴虚阳盛,其感冒发热,原与小儿
无别,医者相传,称为产后惊风,尤堪笑破口吻。然小儿亦非无惊风病也,一二岁时气怯神
弱,凡遇异形异声,骤然跌仆,皆生惊畏,其候面青粪青,多烦多哭,略有所触,则洒洒然
,时恐惧不宁,不比热邪塞窍,神识昏迷,对面撞钟放铳,全然不闻者,斟酌细勘自识,从
来混治之误矣。
The syndrome of "Jing Feng" (Convulsions with Wind) has long been misunderstood. This is because infants and young children have not yet fully developed their muscles, bones, tendons, zang-fu organs, and blood vessels. Their Yang Qi is relatively excessive, while their Yin Qi is insufficient, which differs from adults whose bodies are seven chi tall and possess both abundant Yin and Yang. Precisely because Yin is insufficient and Yang is excessive, heat easily generates internally. When heat becomes severe, it generates phlegm, wind, and Jing (fright/convulsion), which is a common occurrence. If the name had originally been established directly using the four characters "Re" (Heat), "Tan" (Phlegm), "Feng" (Wind), and "Jing" (Fright), later generations would not have found it dazzling or novel. Since these four characters were inconvenient for naming, two were omitted, placing "Jing" at the beginning and "Feng" at the end, rendering it incomprehensible to later generations and leading them to regard it as a peculiar disease.
Furthermore, it is claimed that this disease presents with eight signs: because the head shakes and hands spasm, the name "Chou Che" (Twitching and Pulling) was established; because of sudden jaw locking and leg cramping, the name "Mu Xie Xin Luan Chu Nuo" (Oblique Eyes, Chaotic Heart, Twitching and Grasping) was established; because of spinal rigidity and back arching, the name "Jiao Gong Fan Zhang" (Opisthotonos) was established. These traditions have persisted for a long time, and people do not realize they are fabricated. Whenever such symptoms appear, they are invariably considered peculiar.
They fail to realize that children's Cou Li (pores and interstitial spaces) are not dense, making them susceptible to Wind-Cold pathogens. When Wind-Cold invades the body, it first enters the Taiyang Channel (Foot-Taiyang Bladder Meridian). The Taiyang channel originates from the inner canthus, ascends to the forehead and intersects at the vertex, enters to connect with the brain, emerges again, descends separately along the neck, flanks the spine, and reaches the middle of the waist. Therefore, when diseased, the channels become rigid. Due to this channel tension and spasm, symptoms such as twitching, pulling, grasping, and opisthotonos occur.
Under these various names, mineral-based drugs are used for sedation and suppression, causing external pathogens to penetrate deeply into the Zang-Fu organs. Treatment fails in thousands of cases, resulting in death. Occasionally, those with strong constitutions and mild symptoms recover. Physicians marvel at this as a miraculous achievement, leading each school to adhere strictly to their specialties. Although many children die daily, they remain unaware of their guilt.
For instance, medical texts state: "Children under eight years old do not suffer from Shang Han (Cold Damage)." Such nonsensical statements come from so-called experts, inadvertently supporting the theory of Jing Feng. They fail to consider that children's muscles are soft and fragile, intolerant of Wind-Cold. Upon initial invasion of the Taiyang channel, symptoms such as body rigidity, profuse sweating, tendon movement, and mental confusion already appear, indicating the pathology is extreme within this primary channel. With indiscriminate prescription of decoctions, deaths follow closely. How could one observe the transmission of pathogenic factors to other channels? This is why it is erroneously said that children do not suffer from Shang Han. In reality, children are prone to external contraction and fever, with Shang Han being particularly common. What the world calls "Jing Feng" is precisely this condition. For children suffering from Shang Han, recovery within three days is crucial; if one waits until the channel cycle completes before resolution, the child certainly cannot endure it.
Additionally, Gang Jing (Yang Spasm characterized by anhidrosis) presents without sweat, while Rou Jing (Yin Spasm characterized by hyperhidrosis) presents with sweat. Children rarely suffer from Gang Jing but frequently from Rou Jing. When physicians see continuous sweating and unconsciousness, they often diagnose it as Man Jing Feng (Slow Convulsions) and administer herbs such as Renshen (Ginseng Radix et Rhizoma), Fuzi (Aconiti Lateralis Radix Praeparata), and Baizhu (Atractylodis Macrocephalae Rhizoma). This closes the Cou Li, preventing Heat pathogens from venting outward, causing great harm.
Therefore, when treating heat in children, one should thoroughly guide it out through the exterior, not allow it to sink inward. Zhang Zhongjing originally provided Guizhi Tang (Cinnamon Twig Decoction). Abandoning it to treat based on Li Dongyuan's theories of Internal Injury is a deviation of a hair's breadth resulting in a thousand-mile error, requiring utmost caution.
Furthermore, postpartum women who have lost excessive blood suffer from Yin deficiency and Yang hyperactivity. Their cold-induced fever is originally no different from that in children. Physicians pass down the term "Postpartum Jing Feng," which is laughable.
However, children do indeed suffer from genuine Jing Feng. At ages one or two, when Qi is timid and Spirit is weak, encountering strange shapes or sounds, or sudden falls, induces fright and fear. Signs include a cyan face and cyan stool, irritability, and frequent crying. Slight stimuli cause shivering and constant fearfulness. This differs from Heat pathogens blocking orifices, causing coma where the patient does not hear loud noises like bells or cannons nearby. Careful deliberation allows one to distinguish this, recognizing the errors of historical mixed treatments.