Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs
The information provided here is not a replacement for a doctor. You shouldn't use it for the purpose of self-diagnosing or self-medicating but rather so you can have a more informed discussion with a professional TCM practitioner.
At a glance
Preliminary reading: What is a pattern?
Diagnosis
Common symptoms: Phlegm Headaches Dry cough Dry throat Stuffy nose and one other symptoms
Pulse type(s): Wiry (Xian)
Tongue coating: Thin white coating
Treatment
Common formulas: Xing Su San
Pathology
Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs is a pattern of disharmony in Chinese Medicine.
Chinese Medicine views the human body as a complex system that tends toward harmony. A pattern of disharmony is a disorder that prevents that harmony from occurring.
Patterns give rise to symptoms that may at first glance seem unrelated from a Western standpoint but that actually make a lot of sense when one understands Chinese Medicine theory. For instance here Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs gives rise to such diverse symptoms as headaches, chills without sweating, stuffy nose and dry throat (as well as two others).
To diagnose a pattern, analyzing a patient's pulse as well as their tongue is common practice. In the case of Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs patients tend to exhibit wiry (Xian) pulses as well as a tongue with thin white coating.
Patterns aren't exactly the Chinese Medicine equivalent to Western diseases, they're rather the underlying causes behind diseases or health conditions. Here Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs is thought to sometimes induce conditions such as common cold, bronchitis, emphysema or upper respiratory tract infections.
Diagnosing Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs
Diagnosing a pattern in Chinese Medicine is no easy feat and should be left to professional practitioners. In particular one has to know how to differentiate between different types of pulses and tongue coatings, shapes and colors as well as learn to read from a long list of seemingly unrelated symptoms.
Pulse type(s): Wiry (Xian)
Tongue coating: Thin white coating
Main symptoms: Phlegm Headaches Dry cough Dry throat Stuffy nose Chills without sweating
Treating Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs
Herbal formulas used to treat Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs
Xing Su San
Source date: 1798 AD
Number of ingredients: 11 herbs
Key actions: Clears Dry-Cold. Disseminates the Lung Qi and relieves cough. Transforms thin mucus.
Formula summary
Xing Su San is a 11-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 1798 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that disperse Dryness and moisten.
Besides Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs, Xing Su San is also used to treat Body Fluids Deficiency or Dry-Heat or Dry-Fire.
Related conditions
Please keep in mind that a Western Medicine condition can be caused by several Chinese Medicine patterns of disharmony and vice versa. As such a patient suffering from one of the conditions below will not necessarily be suffering from Exterior Dry Cold invading the Lungs, it is just one pattern that's commonly associated with the condition. Click on a condition to learn what other patterns it's associated with.
Common cold Bronchitis Emphysema Upper respiratory tract infections