Comprehensive Review: Traditional Chinese Medicine Patterns, Endocrine System, Digestive System, and Acupuncture Channels

A comprehensive vocabulary review set covering the six stages of Shang Han Lun, the four levels of Wen Bing, human endocrine physiology, digestive system anatomy and enzymes, and the acupuncture pathways and point energetics of the Spleen, Heart, and Small Intestine channels.

Tai Yang Wind Attack / Wind Strike (Exterior Deficiency)

A pattern presenting with slight aversion to cold, aversion to wind, slight fever, slight sweating, stiff neck, body aches, headache, sneezing, and coughing; characterized by a pale-red tongue with a thin white coating and a floating, moderate pulse.

Tai Yang Cold Attack / Cold Damage (Exterior Excess)

A pattern characterized by aversion to cold, slight fever, no sweating, stiff neck, headache, body aches, and shortness of breath; diagnosed with a pale-red tongue with a thin white coating and a floating, tight pulse.

Tai Yang Water Amassment

An interior Tai Yang organ pattern characterized by aversion to cold, fever, slight thirst, retention of urine, diarrhea, edema, and vomiting fluids after drinking; presents with a thick white greasy tongue coat and a floating, tight pulse.

Tai Yang Blood Amassment

An interior Tai Yang organ pattern presenting with lower abdominal pain, fullness and urinary urgency, blood in urine, mental restlessness, thirst, irritability, and mania; marked by a reddish-purple tongue with a yellow coat and a deep, forceful, string-taut rapid, choppy pulse.

Shao Yang Pattern

A half-interior, half-exterior stage manifesting with alternating fever and chills, hypochondrial fullness and distention, lack of appetite, irritability, dry throat, nausea/vomiting, and a bitter taste; presents with a pale-red tongue with a thin white coat and a wiry pulse.

Yang Ming Channel Pattern

A pattern of the 4 Bigs characterized by high fever, profuse sweating, intense thirst with desire to drink cold water, red face, and restlessness; diagnosed by a red tongue with yellow coating and a surging, rapid pulse.

Yang Ming Organ Pattern

An interior excess heat pattern featuring high fever, profuse sweating, intense thirst for cold water, red face, constipation, fullness and pain in the abdomen worse on pressure, restlessness, irritability, and severe delirium; presents with a red tongue with a dry, thick yellow coating and a deep, forceful, rapid pulse.

Tai Yin Pattern

A cold deficiency interior pattern presenting with abdominal fullness, feeling of cold, vomiting, diarrhea, lack of appetite and thirst, and fatigue; marked by a pale tongue with a sticky white coating and a deep, weak, slow pulse.

Shao Yin Cold Pattern

A systemic interior cold pattern marked by chills, aversion to cold, listlessness, lethargy, cold limbs, lying with the body curled, desire to sleep, diarrhea, absence of thirst or desire for warm fluids, and frequent profuse clear urine; accompanied by a pale, wet tongue and a deep, weak, slow pulse.

Shao Yin Heat Pattern

An interior deficiency heat pattern characterized by fever, irritability, insomnia, dry mouth and throat, scanty-dark urine, and nightsweats; identified by a red tongue without coating and a thready-fine, rapid pulse.

Jue Yin Pattern

The terminal Yin stage characterized by thirst, a feeling of energy rising to the chest, pain and heat in the chest, hunger with no desire to eat, cold limbs, diarrhea, and vomiting of roundworms; manifests with red thorns on the tongue and a wiry pulse.

Wei Level (Defensive Qi Level)

The initial superficial stage of Wen Bing fever differentiation featuring fever worse than chills, aversion to cold, headache, slight sweating, runny nose with yellow discharge, slight thirst, sore throat, and swollen tonsils; shows red sides or tip of the tongue and a superficial, rapid pulse.

Qi Level

The second stage of Wen Bing differentiation presenting with high fever, sweating, aversion to heat, cough with expectoration of yellow sputum, asthma, and thirst; characterized by a red tongue with a thick yellow coating and a forceful, rapid pulse.

Ying Level (Nutritive Qi Level)

The deep level of heat penetration in Wen Bing characterized by fever worse at night, dry mouth with no desire to drink, insomnia, mental restlessness, aphasia, erythema, and skin spots; features a scarlet/crimson peeled tongue and a fine, rapid pulse.

Xue Level (Blood Level)

The deepest and most severe Wen Bing stage presenting with high fever, skin eruptions, vomiting of blood, epistaxis, blood in stools, blood in urine, manic behavior, and convulsions; marked by a scarlet/crimson tongue without coating and a string-taut, rapid pulse.

Endocrine Secretion

A mode of secretion where hormones are released directly into the bloodstream to travel to target organs throughout the body.

Exocrine Secretion

A mode of secretion where substances are released to the outside of the body or into hollow organs; examples include enzymes, saliva, mucus, bile, and tears.

Paracrine Secretion

A type of cellular chemical signaling that acts locally on neighboring cells rather than traveling through systemic circulation.

Hypothalamus

A dual endocrine and nervous system organ located in the brain that functions as the master gland; regulates thirst, hunger, body temperature, and emotions, synthesizes releasing and inhibiting hormones, and produces ADH and oxytocin.

Posterior Pituitary

An endocrine gland that stores and releases hormones into the bloodstream without synthesizing them; serves as the release site for hypothalamic ADH and oxytocin.

Anti-Diuretic Hormone (ADH)

A hormone synthesized by the hypothalamus and released by the posterior pituitary that increases reabsorption of $H_2O$ in the collecting ducts of the nephron in response to hyperconcentrated body fluids.

Oxytocin

A hormone produced in the hypothalamus and released by the posterior pituitary that promotes fetal delivery through uterine contractions, stimulates breast milk ejection, and facilitates social bonding.

Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH)

An anterior pituitary hormone that stimulates the production and maturation of sperm in the testes and oocytes in the ovaries.

Luteinizing Hormone (LH)

An anterior pituitary hormone that surges on Day 14 of the female reproductive cycle to trigger ovulation.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone (ACTH)

An anterior pituitary hormone that signals the adrenal glands to produce and release cortisol.

Growth Hormone (GH)

An anterior pituitary hormone, most of which is converted into insulin-like growth factor 1 by the liver before eliciting cellular growth responses in target tissues.

Melatonin

A hormone secreted by the pineal gland in the diencephalon that regulates sleep-wake cycles and circadian rhythms.

Insulin

An Islets of Langerhans hormone that lowers blood sugar after eating by stimulating cellular utilization of glucose, glycogenesis (glycogen storage in liver and muscles), and lipogenesis in adipose tissue.

Glucagon

An Islets of Langerhans hormone that raises blood sugar during starvation by stimulating glycogenolysis, lipolysis, and gluconeogenesis from fats and amino acids.

Calcitonin

A thyroid gland hormone that lowers circulating blood calcium levels by promoting the uptake of calcium into bone tissue.

Parathyroid Hormone (PTH)

A hormone produced by four small glands on the posterior surface of the thyroid that stimulates bone breakdown to elevate blood calcium levels.

Aldosterone

A mineralocorticoid synthesized in the adrenal cortex that promotes $Na^+$ reabsorption in the nephron collecting ducts when blood volume or blood pressure decreases.

Renin-Angiotensin-Aldosterone Cycle

A systemic pathway to raise blood pressure and volume wherein the kidneys secrete renin to convert angiotensinogen to Angiotensin I, which is converted in the lungs by ACE to Angiotensin II; Angiotensin II stimulates aldosterone and ADH release, constricts arterioles, and triggers thirst.

Greater Omentum

A fatty membrane within the peritoneal cavity that drapes from the stomach downwards over the intestines.

Parietal Cells

Stomach epithelial cells responsible for synthesizing hydrochloric acid ($HCl$) for protein denaturation and intrinsic factor for Vitamin $B_{12}$ absorption in the ileum.

Chief Cells

Gastric cells that secrete pepsinogen, which converts to active pepsin to hydrolyze peptide bonds and break proteins down into amino acids.

Pyloric Sphincter

A muscular ring located at the distal aspect of the stomach that regulates gastric emptying into the duodenum of the small intestine.

Villi and Microvilli

Structural mucosal projections lining the small intestine that increase surface area to maximize nutrient digestion and absorption.

Hepatic Portal Vein

A major vessel through which all venous blood draining from the gastrointestinal organs passes directly to the liver before entering systemic circulation.

Spleen Channel (Foot Tai Yin)

An acupuncture meridian active from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.; associated with dampness, low appetite, jaundice, edema, bloating or distension, and loose stools.

SP 1 (Yinbai)

The first point of the Spleen channel, indicated for reviving consciousness and moxibustion to stop bleeding.

SP 4 (Gongsun)

The luo-connecting point of the Spleen channel and master point of the Chong vessel located just distal to the base of the 1st metatarsal; functions to invigorate blood, cool blood, and regulate menses.

SP 6 (Sanyinjiao)

The crossing point of the three leg yin channels (Spleen, Liver, and Kidney) used clinically to regulate menses, invigorate blood, and nourish blood.

SP 8 (Diji)

The xi-cleft point of the Spleen channel primarily indicated for treating acute conditions such as menstrual pain.

SP 9 (Yinlingquan)

A primary point on the Spleen channel used to drain dampness, particularly from the middle and lower jiao, and regulate the body's waterways.

SP 10 (Xuehai)

A point located 2 cun superior to the superior/medial border of the patella at a $45^\bot$ angle in the vastus medialis muscle; indicated for invigorating and cooling the blood.

SP 21 (Dabao)

The great luo-connecting point of the Spleen located 6 cun inferior to the center of the axilla along the mid-axillary line; used to treat generalized pain throughout the entire body.

Spleen Tendinomuscular Channel (TMM)

An extra-channel trajectory originating at the foot (near SP 1), ascending to the genitals, umbilicus, and anterior spine; indicated for hernia-like symptoms such as twisting genital pain radiating to the navel.

Heart Channel (Hand Shao Yin)

An acupuncture meridian active from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. with no crossing points in the arm; associated with palpitations, insomnia, heat in the palms, cardiac pain, anxiety, and sweating.

HT 3 (Shaohai)

A point situated at the medial end of the transverse cubital crease that clears heat, transforms phlegm, and calms the shen for phlegm misting the heart orifices.

HT 5 (Tongli)

The luo-connecting point of the Heart channel that benefits the tongue for speech loss or inability to speak, and supports heart qi to regulate heart rhythm.

HT 6 (Yinxi)

The xi-cleft point of the Heart channel considered optimal for nourishing heart yin, clearing deficiency heat, and stopping nightsweats.

HT 7 (Shenmen)

The primary Heart channel point selected for nourishing heart blood in patients experiencing pallor, insomnia, and anxiety.

HT 8 (Shaofu)

The ying-spring fire point of the Heart channel located on the palm between the 4th and 5th metacarpal bones where the tip of the pinky rests; clears heart heat and fire.

Small Intestine Channel (Hand Tai Yang)

An acupuncture meridian active from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. that enters the Heart, Small Intestine, and Stomach; associated with lower abdominal pain/distension, yellow sclera, deafness, and cheek swelling.

SI 1 (Shaoze)

A point situated on the ulnar side of the little finger nail corner that promotes lactation.

SI 3 (Houxi)

A point located on the Small Intestine channel proximal to the 5th metacarpophalangeal joint that functions as the confluent/master point of the Du (Governing) vessel.

SI 4 (Wangu)

A point situated between the base of the 5th metacarpal and the triquetrum bone; indicated for jaundice by separating the clear from the turbid.

SI 8 (Xiaohai)

A point situated between the olecranon tip and medial humeral epicondyle superficial to the ulnar nerve; inserted transversely.

SI 11 (Tianzong)

A point positioned one-third of the distance from the inferior spine of the scapula to the inferior scapular angle; used to benefit the breast.