Latent Heat

[Guest guest]

Dear Group,

 

I have always understood the theory of latent heat to be a way of explaining

how it is that external pathogens can sometimes produce symptoms of internal

heat without first producing external symptoms. But the question of what

clinical relevance this theory might have intrigued me, so I had a look

through a Chinese language Formula book for references. I only discovered a

couple but I found them thought provoking.

 

The first was in an explanation on the use of Major Green Dragon Brewage (Da

Qing Long Tang). I guess everyone knows that Major Green Dragon Brewage is

used for external cold with internal heat - symptoms of aversion to cold,

absence of perspiration and floating tight pulse with internal heat

irritability, relatively strong fever and often thirst. According to the

text, by analysing these symptoms, " It can be deduced that pre-existing

latent heat has been stirred up by an attack of external cold " .

 

The second was in an explanation on the use of Modified Solomon's Seal

Brewage (Jia Jian Wei Rui Tang). According to this passage, " In chronic yin

deficiency, latent heat usually generates internally and transforms

pathogenic qi into heat. Therefore, during the initial stages of an attack

to the lung qi and defensive qi there will be symptoms of external heat like

headache, body heat, mild aversion to wind and cold, absence of perspiration

or scanty perspiration and thirst. But because the yin deficient internal

heat also damages the fluids, there will also be symptoms like dry throat,

dry cough, restlessness, red tongue and rapid pulse " .

 

Both of these passages have a slightly different perspective about latent

heat than those I learned as a student. As a student I learned that latent

heat resulted when an external pathogen entered and lodged without being

challenged by upright qi (presumably because the jing of the seasonally

active organ was deplete) and that it became manifest during change of

season when the organ corresponding to the new season became active. This is

not what these passages say. The first passage says that latent heat can be

stirred by new attacks and the second that it can result from yin vacuity.

Oh well, I guess Chinese medicine always finds new perspectives for old

ideas.

 

By the way quiet a few years ago, I looked up a Chinese language medical

dictionary to get some extra insights into latent heat. It wasn't very

useful but it did make the point that throughout the history of Chinese

medicine no one could agree on where it was that latent heat lodged. The

theory that is currently popular is a Warm disease theory.

 

Garry Seifert

[Guest guest]

on 11/16/00 4:11 PM, snakeoil.works at snakeoil.works wrote:

 

> Z'ev,

> All your points in your letter were fascinating and very... Sherlock

> Holmesian.

> But especially #6 below ('oh, and one more thing,' says Colombo) buttonholed

> my attention enough to ask about the " recent article on autoimmune

> disease... " What is that from and where might one access it? I'd appreciate

> looking at it.

>

> Thanx,

> Ann Brameier

>

Ann,

I like the Sherlock Holmes metaphor. . . . .

I didn't mention the article, because I need to remember it. As soon as I

find it, I'll post to the group.

 

All the best,

 

 

[Guest guest]

Attached text doesn't come through most email lists and can't be read by

many programs, including mine. Please cut and paste into a post or

upload to the web site through Todd. I'd like to see the article.

 

Karen Vaughan

CreationsGarden

***************************************

Email advice is not a substitute for medical treatment.

" The unfortunate thing about this world is that the good habits are much

easier to give up than the bad ones. " W. Somerset Maugham

 

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