王肯堂曰∶忿怒胸痞,肝气滞也。倦怠胸痞,中气虚也。胸满多痰,脾气虚也。(《准绳》)
书曰∶凡胸痞,身上半属阳,身下半属阴,胸前乃清阳之分,非物也;若腹满
者,是有物而非邪气也∶但痞气亦胀满胸前,何以别之?曰∶痞气因邪在表,误用
硝黄、巴豆、牵牛下之,以致胸胀,必问其人曾经下否?若经下过,即是痞气,未
经下而胸前胀满者,即半表半里证。
夫疮疡阳气脱陷,或因克伐之剂,或因脓血大泄,或因吐泻之后,或因误而入
房,若发热头疼,小便淋涩,或滑数便血,目赤烦喘自汗,发热气短,头晕体倦,热
渴意欲饮水,投水恶寒,憎寒身热恶衣,扬手掷足,汗出如水,腰背反张,郑声不绝,
此无根虚火之假热证。或畏寒头痛,咳逆呕吐,耳聩目蒙,小便遗难,泻利肠鸣,里
急腹痛,玉茎短缩,冷汗时出,齿牙浮肿,肢体麻痹,或厥冷身痛,或切牙啮唇,舌
根强硬,此阳气脱陷之真寒证。皆勿论其脉,勿论其疮,但见一二,急用参附汤补
之,多有复生者。大凡溃后劳碌,元气亏损,或梦遗精脱,或滑数便血,或外邪乘
之,或误用寒凉,气血脱陷而致斯证。治以前药,亦有复生者。
梅氏曰∶凡治背疮,肉长疾嫩,皮不及裹,见风即成僵肉,速以寒水石烧研为
细末,傅疮上,再用铜绿细末上之,肉即不作僵矣。(《准绳》)
Weng Kentang stated: Chest stuffiness caused by anger is due to the stagnation of Liver Qi (Liver Qi). Chest stuffiness accompanied by fatigue is due to the deficiency of Middle Qi (Middle Qi). Chest fullness with excessive phlegm is due to the deficiency of Spleen Qi (Spleen Qi) (from *Yixue Zhunsheng*).
Ancient texts state: Regarding chest stuffiness, the upper half of the body belongs to Yang, and the lower half belongs to Yin; the chest area is the domain where clear Yang distributes, not a blockage by tangible pathogenic factors. If abdominal fullness occurs, it involves tangible pathogens rather than mere pathogenic qi obstruction. However, Pi Qi (stuffiness syndrome) can also cause chest fullness; how to distinguish them? The answer is: Pi Qi arises when pathogenic factors are in the exterior, and purgatives such as Nuxiaoshi (Mirabilite), Dahuang (Rhubarb Root and Rhizome), Badou (Croton Seed), or Qianniuzi (Bunge Morning Glory Seed) are mistakenly used for downward purging, leading to chest distension. One must ask if the patient has undergone purgation. If yes, it is Pi Qi; if no purgation was performed but there is chest fullness, it is a Shaoyang syndrome (half-exterior, half-interior syndrome).
In patients with sores and ulcers, collapse and sinking of Yang Qi may occur due to the excessive use of draining agents, massive loss of pus and blood, following vomiting and diarrhea, or erroneous sexual intercourse during illness. Symptoms include fever and headache, dysuria (difficult and painful urination), or a slippery and rapid pulse with hematochezia (blood in stool); red eyes, restlessness, panting, spontaneous sweating, fever with shortness of breath, dizziness, and physical fatigue; thirst with desire to drink water, yet aversion to cold after drinking; aversion to cold, body heat, aversion to clothing, throwing hands and feet about, profuse sweating like water, opisthotonos (backward arching of the back), continuous muttering (Zhengsheng). These constitute false heat syndromes caused by rootless deficient fire. Alternatively, symptoms may include aversion to cold and headache, cough with regurgitation of air and vomiting, deafness and blurred vision, urinary incontinence or difficulty urinating, diarrhea with borborygmus (rumbling in the intestines), tenesmus and abdominal pain, retraction of the penis, intermittent cold sweat, swelling of gums and teeth, limb numbness, cold extremities with body pain, grinding teeth and biting lips, and stiffness of the tongue root. These constitute true cold syndromes caused by the collapse and sinking of Yang Qi. Regardless of the pulse diagnosis or the condition of the sore, if one or two of these symptoms are present, Shenfu Tang (Ginseng and Aconite Decoction) should be urgently administered to tonify the deficiency. Many patients recover. Generally, after the ulceration of a sore, overexertion leads to the depletion of Yuan Qi (Original Qi); nocturnal emission with essence loss, a slippery and rapid pulse with hematochezia, invasion by external pathogens, or the mistaken use of cold-natured herbs can lead to the collapse and sinking of Qi and Blood, resulting in these syndromes. Treatment with the aforementioned remedies has also led to recovery.
Mei stated: When treating back sores, if the flesh grows too quickly and tenderly, such that the skin cannot cover it, exposure to wind will result in the formation of stiff flesh (rigid granulation tissue). Quickly calcine Hanshuishi (Halloysitum Rubrum), grind it into a fine powder, and apply it to the sore. Then, cover it with a fine powder of Tonglv (Malachite). The flesh will not become stiff (from *Yixue Zhunsheng*).