The following content are excerpt from a case analysis to show that the meridian measuring device can be used to select correct formula. You can visit this link to read the full content.
2.Xuefu Zhuyu Tang may be more effective
Many studies have shown that the COVID-19 virus can cause micro clots in a human body[2]. In view of TCM, in patients with long COVID who have not received timely treatment for a long time, removing blood stasis should also be an important part of the treatment. For the patient in this article, the color of the blood vessels under the tongue, and the disappearance of sweating in the morning after cupping, were all clear signs of blood stasis. The question was which formula shall be used. At the beginning of treatment, Dr. Wang chose Guizhi Fuling Wan. But after taking the medicine for two weeks, the shape of the blood vessels under the tongue did not change much. At this time, doctors were faced with questions: should the patient take it for more time? Or another formula should be used instead?
Fig. 3. The waveform that shows Shaoyang Meridian damage but no spikes
Since past experience has shown that when blood stasis removing drugs (such as Guizhi Fuling Wan) are effective, spikes can be seen in the meridian measurement waveforms [3], the author took measurement in order to answer the aforementioned questions(the result interpretation principle of the waveform can also be found in [3]). Figure 3 shows the waveform measured after taking Dr Wang’s medicine (which included Guizhi Fuling Wan). It could be seen from the picture that after taking the medicine, there were no spikes in any curve, so it was better to change the medicine. Careful observation also revealed that in the waveform of Fig. 3, the difference between the infrared temperature of the Hand Shaoyin meridian (solid purple curve) and the body surface temperature (dotted purple curve) was very small, while the difference between the infrared temperature and the body surface temperature corresponding to the Taiyang Meridian(black curves) was larger. According to the experience in [3], this was a symptom of stagnation of Yin-nutrient Qi in Hand Shaoyin Meridian, and Si Ni San should be used. Considering that Xuefu Zhuyu Tang contains Si Ni San, it was thus possible to treat blood stasis and Shaoyin Qi stagnation at the same time. For this reason, the author recommended that the patient take Xuefu Zhuyu Tang first while waiting for Dr. Wang’s medicine. When measured again after taking the medicine (Fig. 4), spikes appeared in the waveform. It can be seen that in this patient, Xuefu Zhuyu Tang has a better effect in eliminating blood stasis. Moreover, by taking Xuefu Zhuyu Tang, the patient sweated at night many times, and the sweating area gradually expanded (from the groin to the armpits, and then to the chest and back). Not only that, in the later stage of treatment, the patient’s hands became warm. These all showed that Qi can gradually pass through the Foot Yangming Meridian, Spleen Meridian, Heart Meridian, and Hand and Foot Taiyang Meridian, and the direction of treatment was correct.
Fig. 4. The waveform that shows spikes in purple solid curve
3.Some issue on Xiao Chaihu Tang
The patient in this article took Xiao Chaihu Tang in 2022 and 2023 respectively. When he took it in 2022, not only did the medicine have little effect, but he sometimes felt more fatigued. However, after combining oxygen therapy and Xuefu Zhuyu Tang in 2023, the phenomenon of aggravated fatigue basically no longer occurred. The reason should be that in 2022, Xiao Chaihu Tang allows Qi to circulate, but after the Qi was consumed, it cannot be replenished in time, resulting in worsen fatigue. The author himself has had a likewise experience in the past(After Xiao ChaiHu Tang was used to clear obstacle in Shaoyang meridian and Qi began to flow, the palpitations got worsen). It can be seen that in patients with complex pathogenesis, Xiao Chaihu Tang may cause temporary worsening of the condition, but this should not lead to the conclusion that taking Xiao Chaihu Tang is wrong.
Another interesting phenomenon was the hot flash(feeling hot for a while then cold for a while). The patient in this article did not suffer from hot flash before starting TCM treatment, but during the treatment in 2022 and 2023, he had hot flash many times, which quickly disappeared after taking more Xiao Chaihu Tang. The author believes that the reason why there was no hot flash in the beginning was that the Qi was very weak at that time(Since Qi was very weak, and the lung could not push it to circulate, there was naturally no hot or cold caused by the intermittent flow of Qi). Subsequently, when the Qi became stronger, but there’s still problem in the Shaoyang meridian, hot flash appeared, till the problem in the Shaoyang meridian was partially cleared by Xiao Chaihu Tang. This process of appearing and disappearing actually reflects the complex changes of Qi and meridians in the patient’s body.
In addition, it should be noted that during the second remote diagnosis, Dr. Wang think that there was no sign of typical characteristic of Xiao Chaihu Tang syndrome (or the previous application of Xiao Chaihu Tang was not effective), so he no longer used Xiao Chaihu Tang. However, the measurement results at this time(Fig. 3) showed that the patient still had synchronous high-frequency infrared temperature fluctuations in multiple meridians. According to the author’s experience, this is a clear indication for the use of Xiao Chaihu Tang[3]. Therefore, it was recommended that the patient continued to take it. After taking it for three more weeks, the newly got measurement results show that the fluctuation disappeared. It can be seen from these fact that the measurements can help doctors to select medicine, and ensure that potential problems are treated effectively and thoroughly.