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Healthphone.com's Healing Centre Panel of professional Chinese doctors,
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omissions. The information in this section is presented as is, for
educational purposes only. As with any medical matter, always
consult your healthcare professional before acting on any health-related
information.
Corns are small, round mounds of firm, dead skin
that form on or between the toes. Their hard, waxy core,
which bores down into the skin and presses on the
underlying tissue and nerves, can cause extreme pain. At
times corns are associated with bursae (fluid-filled
sacs), which can become irritated and result in
bursitis. Calluses are thickened areas of the
skin. They develop most often on the balls and heels of
the feet and on the hands. Skin buildup is the result of
excessive friction or pressure against the surface of
the skin. As pressure mounts, dead skin cells
accumulate, and the skin thickens and the corns and
calluses are formed. People with flat feet or abnormal
bone structure in the feet have great incidence of
calluses and corns.
Corns
Usually regular in shape, corns can be white, gray,
or yellow, and usually form on the outside of the
first or fifth toes. The corns may cause pain on the
local area.
Calluses
Calluses vary in size and shape. Sometimes, calluses
grow so thick and irregular in shape that the skin
becomes inflexible and cracks. Calluses can cause
enough discomfort to interfere with physical
activities.
This ailment,
according to TCM, has different syndromes. The treatment for
these syndromes using herbal medicine and acupuncture is shown
below.
Syndrome (a)
Damp-heat excess in
interior
High
fever, headache, pain and tenderness in the lower
abdomen, profuse and foul leukorrhea ( discharge which
is yellow or red and white intermingled), nausea and
anorexia, dry mouth and thirst, red tongue with yellow
and greasy fur, slippery and rapid pulse.
To treat byHerbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: Clearing away the
pathogenic (disease producing) heat and toxic materials
and promoting diuresis (loss of excess water in the
body) and pus discharge.
Prescription/Formula: Modified anti-infective
decoction of honeysuckle, forsythia, sargentgloryvine
and partrinia. Honeysuckle flower (Yin Hua)30g,
forsythia fruit (Lian Qiao)20g, sargentgloryvine (Hong
Teng)30g, coix seed (Bai Jiang Cao)30g, capejasmine
fruit (Yi Yi Ren)30g, montan bark (Zhi Zi)10g, moutan
bark (Dan Pi)10g, red peony root (Chi Shao)12g, Sichuan
chinaberry (Chuan Lian Zi)10g, corydalis tuber (Yuan
Hu)9g, peach kernel (Tao Ren)9g, prepared myrrh (Zhi Ru
Xiang)4g, prepared frankincense (Zhi Mo Yao)4g.
Syndrome (b)
Accumulation of stagnant toxin-heat in interior
Residual fever or undulating low fever, fatigue and
myasthenia (weakness) of limbs, distending pain and
tenderness in the lower abdomen, yellow, profuse,
sticky, thick and foul leukorrhea, red tongue with
yellow or greasy fur, rapid pulse.
To treat by Herbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: Removing blood stasis and
lumps and dissipating the accumulation of stagnant toxin
-heat.
Prescription/Formula: Burreed and zedoary
decoction for removing stagnancy Burreed tuber (San
Leng)9g, zedoary (E Zhu)9g, red sage root (Dan Shen)15g,
corydalis tuber (Yuan Hu)9g, red peony root (Chi
Shao)9g, moutan bark (Dan Pi)9g, peach kernel (Tao
Ren)9g, coix seed (Yi Yi Ren)15g, sargentgloryvine (Hong
Teng)30g, partinia (Bai Jiang)30g.
Syndrome (c)
Blood stasis due to accumulation of cold
Distending and dragging pain in the lower abdomen and
lumbosacral (loin and low back) region aggravated by
cold, clear and cold leukorrhagia, red tongue with thin
white fur, deep and thready or deep and uneven pulse.
To treat by Herbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: Promoting blood
circulation to remove blood stasis and dispersing cold
to relieve pain.
Prescription/Formula: Modified cinnamon twig and
poria pill. Cinnamon twig (Gui Zhi)9g, poria ( Fu
Ling)9g, peach kernel (Tao Ren)9g, moutan bark (Dan
Pi)9g, nutgrass flatsedge (Xiang Fu)9g, red sage (Dan
Shen) 15g, red peony (Chi Shao)9g, white peony root (Bai
Shao)9g, corydalis tuber (Yuan Hu)9g, forsythia fruit
(Lian Qiao)9g, myrrh (Mo Yao)9g, chicken's
gizzard-membrane (Ji Nei Jin)9g.
Distending and dragging pain in the lower abdomen, pain
in the lumbosacral region, dragging and distending
sensation in the anus, aggravated by sexual intercourse,
defecation and overwork, continuous leukorrhagia, and
tongue with thin and greasy fur, taut and thready pulse.
To treat by Herbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: Promoting blood
circulation, removing blood stasis and regulating the
flow of qi to alleviate pain.
Simple Prescription: Bo-Yun Tui-Yi Wan one time a
pill, twice a day.
To treat by Acupuncture and
Moxibustion Therapeutic principle: Regulating the
Circulation of Qi, resolve blood stasis and relieve
block of eye area by using points mainly from Extra
meridian point and the Urine Bladder meridian of Food
Tai-Yang and the Liver meridian of Food Jue-Yin and
Stomach meridian of Foot Yang-Ming points.
Prescription: Zusanli (St36), Yu-Yao (Extra3),
Tai-Yang (Extra2), Shen-Shu (UB23) and Xing-Jian (Li2).
Acupuncture 10-20 minutes or with Moxibustion at each
point 1-2 minutes.
Generally speaking, Qigong is good for healing
effect of this specific ailment, however
individual results may vary. It improves the
flow of the qi and the circulation of the blood,
so you'll experience more energy, but, you won't
see/ feel any immediate effects, as with many
exercises and therapies, it takes a few weeks or
even months of practice before you'll see any
significant improvements.
For the information of different types of Qigong
,just click a link above.
This information is for education purpose only.
We strongly advise you seek a licensed Qigong
master to learn the correct ways to conduct
these exercises before attempting them.
(b) Medicated diet
1. Astragalus Root(Huangqi) 30g, Red Peony
Root(Chishao) 30g, Red Sage Root(Danseng) 30g,
Spatholobus Stem(Jixueteng) 30g, Chinese
Angelica Root(Danggui) 15g, Licorice(Gancao) 6g.
Decoct and drink it.
2. Dried Body of Scorpion(Quanxie), Dried Body
of Centipede(Wusong), Dried Body of Ground
Beetle(Tuyuan), Dried Earthworm(Dilong). All the
above drugs are made into pills in equal amount
each. The size of the pill is the same as that
of a mung bean. Take 3-5g each time, three times
a day.
(c) Life style
(a) Prevent the local parts from being pressed
or rubbed. The size of shoes and socks should
fit the feet well, and the heel of shoes should
be soft.
(b) Those people with abnormal foot bones should
receive corrective therapy as soon as possible.
(c) Refrain from using powerful corrosive drugs.
(d) Never use unclean knives and scissors for
chipping the corns lest secondary infection
could result.
Acknowledgments:
Healthphone.com greatly acknowledges the support
and dedication of our
Healing Centre Panel, without whom this
section would not be possible.
We also greatly acknowedge Ms. Najaf Munir,
MBBS, for her editorial support. Ms. Munir
simplified the highly technical medical
documents into easy-to-read documents, for the
enjoyment and education of our numerous
visitors.