Phlegm Syndrome

Phlegm Syndrome is one volume in the Traditional Chinese Internal Medicine Self-Study Series, co-authored by Shanxi internal medicine specialists Shen Quanyu and Wu Yuhua, published by Shanxi Science and Education Press in July 1989, with 58 pages in total. The series planned fifty volumes, each focusing on a common internal medicine syndrome, aiming to popularize knowledge of traditional Chinese internal medicine, help grassroots medical workers master TCM prevention and treatment methods for common and frequently occurring diseases, and provide systematic self-study readers for students at TCM colleges. The book centers on phlegm, an important pathological concept in traditional Chinese internal medicine. It first outlines the meaning and origins of phlegm syndrome and explains how physicians through the ages understood phlegm. It then proceeds from etiology and pathology, explaining that phlegm is transformed from accumulated fluids and is closely related to impaired qi transformation in the lung, spleen, and kidney, and discusses various causes of phlegm such as wind, heat, dampness, dryness, stagnation, food, and alcohol. The main section follows the format of syndrome differentiation and treatment, describing the main symptoms, pathogenesis, treatment methods, and formulas for various phlegm syndromes, and introduces commonly used empirical formulas based on the authors' clinical experience. Selected case records are then included for verification. As a self-study guide, the book also includes literature excerpts, review questions and answers, and the application of Chinese patent medicines, allowing readers to study, check, and test themselves. The book is short, clearly organized, and a practical introductory reader on phlegm syndrome.