Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner
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: Dry mouth Dry throat Lower back pain Painful urination Urinary retention and eight other symptoms
Pulse type(s): Rapid (Shu), Slippery (Hua)
Tongue coating: Sticky coating
Treatment
Common formulas: Er Miao San Ba Zheng San
Pathology
Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner 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 Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner gives rise to such diverse symptoms as scanty and yellow urine, lower back pain, weakness of the lower extremities and red and swollen feet (as well as nine others).
To diagnose a pattern, analyzing a patient's pulse as well as their tongue is common practice. In the case of Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner patients tend to exhibit rapid (Shu) or slippery (Hua) pulses as well as a tongue with sticky coating.
Patterns aren't exactly the Chinese Medicine equivalent to Western diseases, they're rather the underlying causes behind diseases or health conditions. Here Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner is thought to sometimes induce conditions such as cystitis, prostatitis or glomerulonephritis (as well as seven others).
Diagnosing Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner
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): Rapid (Shu) or slippery (Hua)
Tongue coating: Sticky coating
Main symptoms: Dry mouth Dry throat Lower back pain Painful urination Urinary retention Red and swollen feet Lower abdominal pain Red and swollen knees Scanty and dark urine Scanty and yellow urine Sores on the lower extremities Weakness of the lower extremities Thick yellow smelly vaginal discharge
Treating Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner
Herbal formulas used to treat Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner
Ba Zheng San
Source date: 1107 AD
Number of ingredients: 9 herbs
Key actions: Clears Heat and Fire. Promotes urination. Unblocks painful urinary dribbling.
Formula summary
Ba Zheng San is a 9-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 1107 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that clear Heat and expel dampness.
Besides Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner, Ba Zheng San is also used to treat Damp-Cold in the Bladder or Damp-Heat.
Er Miao San
Source date: 1481 AD
Number of ingredients: 2 herbs
Key actions: Expels Dampness from the Lower Burner. Drains Heat from the Lower Burner.
Formula summary
Er Miao San is a 2-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 1481 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that expel Dampness.
Besides Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner, Er Miao San is also used to treat Damp-Heat.
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 Damp-Heat in the Lower Burner, 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.
Cystitis Prostatitis Glomerulonephritis Urethritis Stomatitis Osteoarthritis Vaginitis Gout Spasm of the gastrocnemius muscle Urinary tract calculi