Wind-Damp
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: Edema Sweating Urinary difficulty General sensation of heaviness
Pulse type(s): Floating (Fu)
Tongue coating: Thick white coating
Tongue color: Pale
Treatment
Common formulas: Fang Ji Huang Qi Tang
Pathology
Wind-Damp 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 Wind-Damp gives rise to such diverse symptoms as sweating, general sensation of heaviness, edema and urinary difficulty.
To diagnose a pattern, analyzing a patient's pulse as well as their tongue is common practice. In the case of Wind-Damp patients tend to exhibit floating (Fu) pulses as well as a pale tongue with thick 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 Wind-Damp is thought to sometimes induce conditions such as edema, ascites or rheumatic heart disease (as well as three others).
Diagnosing Wind-Damp
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): Floating (Fu)
Tongue coating: Thick white coating
Tongue color: Pale
Main symptoms: Edema Sweating Urinary difficulty General sensation of heaviness
Treating Wind-Damp
Herbal formulas used to treat Wind-Damp
Fang Ji Huang Qi Tang
Source date: 220 AD
Number of ingredients: 6 herbs
Key actions: Diuretic, clears Excess fluid and removes edema. Tonifies the Spleen Qi. Calms External Wind.
Formula summary
Fang Ji Huang Qi Tang is a 6-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 220 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that promote urination and leach out Dampness.
Besides Wind-Damp, Fang Ji Huang Qi Tang is also used to treat Oedema.
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 Wind-Damp, 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.
Edema Ascites Rheumatic heart disease Rheumatoid arthritis Acute glomerulonephritis Lumbar disc disease