Xiao Chai Hu Tang

🩺Cause & mechanism

• The shaoyang channel passes through the chest and covers the rib-side, and is located between the taiyang and yangming.
• When cold damage invades the shaoyang, which belongs to half-exterior half-interior, struggle between pathogenic qi and zheng qi causes alternating chills and fever.
• The foot shaoyang channel starts from the inner canthus, a branch enters the chest and diaphragm, connects the liver and gallbladder, and circulates though the rib side of body.
• Pathogens constrained in the shaoyang transform into heat.
• Gallbladder fire harasses the upper body, which causes fullness and discomfort in the chest and rib-side, vexation, a bitter taste in the mouth, dry throat, and dizzy vision.
• When gallbladder heat invades the stomach, it leads to the failure of the stomach qi to harmonize and direct counterflow downward.
• If women contract wind pathogens during their menstrual period, the combination of the inward transmission of pathogenic heat with blood stasis may cause their qi to flow irregularly, cease their menstruation and develop periodic alternating chills and fever.
• The sweating method can be used to release exterior pathogens, and the emetic and purgative methods are applicable for interior pathogens.
• However, since the pathogen is located at half exterior and half interior, the sweating, emetic, and purgative methods are all inappropriate.
• Only the harmonizing method can be used.