余侄元素内人,季夏难产,夜过半,急叩予门。起而问之,为产者急矣。曰∶然作何状
?曰
∶产已及户不能下,用力则胸膈间有物上冲,痛不可忍。予思少顷,曰∶此必双胎,胞已分
而一上一下也,及户者在下欲产,在上者以用力而上冲,惟上冲,胸膈故病也。势亦险矣。
乃诸书如《产宝》、《良方》、《胎产须知》与各大方家俱未论及,将何以处?因详思其治
法,偶悟必安上,而下始用力产也。即取益元散一两与之,令以紫苏汤送下,嘱必如法,饮
药入腹而胸膈痛止,不超时产两女,母亦无恙。予仲子泰来问曰∶益元散非产科急剂,何能
取效如是?予曰∶紫苏安胎下气,滑石滑以利窍,亦摧生之良品。盖医者,意也。予亦以意
裁处之耳。此法方书无载,故记之,以备专女科者采而用焉。
有邵兄而讳马者,年五十患呕吐,吐物如烂猪肺状,胸背胀。市上诸医皆以翻胃治之不
效,
而反加潮热烦躁,饮食不入口。歙医谓肺坏,辞去不治。延予治之。诊其脉两寸滑数,左关
尺
涩。予曰∶此瘀血痰饮症也,非肺坏,果若肺坏,声音当哑,今声亮而独胸背作胀,瘀血痰
饮明矣。此症殆由酒后怒发所致。盖肝藏血,脾统血,酒伤脾,怒伤肝,以故不能藏,不能
统,血随气上积于胸膈,必吐出而胀斯宽也。法当消瘀血、调气化痰,气调瘀消,则新血始
得归经,大本端而病根可除矣。乃为立方。滑石三钱,甘草五分,茜根二钱,小蓟一钱五分
,桃仁、贝母、归尾、香附各一钱,山栀仁、枳壳、桑白皮各八分。服十帖而全安。
My nephew Yuansu's wife experienced difficult labor at the end of summer. Past midnight, her family urgently knocked on my door. I rose to inquire and learned that the parturient was in a critical state. They said, "Yes, what are the symptoms?" The reply was: "The fetus has reached the vaginal opening but cannot be delivered; upon exertion, a sensation of something rushing upward from the chest and diaphragm occurs, causing unbearable pain." I pondered for a moment and said, "This must be a twin pregnancy where the placenta has separated, with one fetus positioned high and the other low. The lower fetus is ready to deliver, while the upper fetus is being pushed upward by the mother's exertion. It is precisely this upward rush that causes pathology in the chest and diaphragm. The situation is indeed perilous." However, consulting various texts such as *Chanbao* (Precious Prescriptions for Childbirth), *Liangfang* (Good Prescriptions), *Taichan Xu Zhi* (Necessities for Pregnancy and Childbirth), and works by renowned physicians, none had discussed this condition. How should it be managed? After careful consideration of the treatment method, I suddenly realized that the upper fetus must first be stabilized before the lower one can exert force to deliver. I immediately took Yiyuan San (Yuehua Powder, a formula composed mainly of Talcum and Licorice) one liang and administered it to her, instructing her to take it with Perilla Decoction, and urged strict adherence to the method. Once the medicine entered the stomach, the chest and diaphragm pain ceased. Within less than an hour, two female infants were born, and the mother remained unharmed. My second son, Tailai, asked, "Yiyuan San is not an emergency obstetric prescription; how could it achieve such efficacy?" I replied, "Perilla stabilizes the fetus and directs qi downward; Talcum lubricates and opens orifices; both are excellent agents for facilitating delivery. Essentially, medical practice relies on clinical reasoning (yi). I applied my own judgment in this case. Since this method is not recorded in standard formularies, I record it here for specialists in gynecology to reference and utilize."
A brother surnamed Shao, named Ma, suffered from vomiting at the age of fifty. His vomitus resembled rotten pig lungs, accompanied by distension in the chest and back. Physicians in the market treated him as having Fanwei (Rebellious Stomach/Regurgitation disease) without effect, and his symptoms worsened with tidal fever, irritability, and inability to ingest food. A physician from Xin'an diagnosed lung necrosis and declined further treatment. He then sought my care. Upon palpating his pulse, the cun positions of both hands were slippery and rapid, while the guan and chi positions on the left were choppy. I stated, "This is a syndrome of blood stasis and phlegm-fluid retention, not lung necrosis. If the lungs were truly necrotic, the voice would be hoarse. Now his voice is clear, yet he experiences only chest and back distension, clearly indicating blood stasis and phlegm-fluid. This condition likely resulted from anger after drinking alcohol. The liver stores blood, and the spleen controls blood. Alcohol damages the spleen, and anger damages the liver. Consequently, the body fails to store and control blood properly; blood follows rebellious qi upward and accumulates in the chest and diaphragm. Distension is relieved only after vomiting. The treatment principle should be to resolve blood stasis, regulate qi, and transform phlegm. Once qi is regulated and stasis resolved, new blood can return to its vessels, the root is corrected, and the disease foundation eliminated." I then prescribed the following: Talcum 3 qian, Licorice 5 fen, Rubia Root 2 qian, Small Thistle 1.5 qian, Peach Kernel, Fritillaria Bulb, Angelica Sinensis Tail, and Cyperus Rhizome each 1 qian, Gardenia Seed, Aurantium Fruit, and Mulberry Bark each 8 fen. After taking ten doses, he fully recovered.