Important Note:
Although the information in this section was written by
Healthphone.com's Healing Centre Panel of professional Chinese doctors,
licensed acupuncturists, herbalists and other experts, Healthphone.com
accepts no legal responsibility nor liability for any errors or
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.
Essential hypertension is a chronic high blood
pressure with no identifiable cause. In the early stage,
there are symptoms of dizziness, headache, palpitation
(noticeable and irregular heartbeat), insomnia, tinnitus
(ringing in the ears), lassitude, polyuria (increased
urine production) and epistaxis (bleeding from the
nose), etc. In the late stage the organs such as the
heart, brain, kidneys and others may be involved. It
belongs to the categories of "dizziness" and "headache"
in traditional Chinese medicine.
(a) Common symptoms are dizziness, headache, head
distension, restlessness, temperamental tendency,
insomnia, palpitation, numbness of extremities.
(b)Hypertension is defined as a pressure greater
than 140/90mmHg (18.7/12.0kPa ).The elevation of
diastolic pressure is of more significance for
clinical diagnosis.
(c) In severe cases or cases of long duration, the
heart, brain and kidney may be compromised with the
presentation of relevant clinical manifestations.
(d) In some patients blood pressure may be markedly
elevated abruptly under certain precipitating
factors accompanied with severe headache, dizziness,
nausea and vomiting, which is called "hypertension
crisis". If disturbance of consciousness, convulsion
(fits), transient hemiplegia (weakness of one half
of the body) or aphasia (speechlessness caused by
disease or injury to a part of the brain) are
present, that is called "hypertensive
encephalopathy".
It is
effective to treat hypertension by TCM. Not only the
TCM's treatment improves symptoms obviously, but the
therapy also lessens side effects. Western medicine &
TCM are effective in alleviating weaknesses. However,TCM
results in less side effects and also helps in reversing
damage to the target organs. It is advisable to practise
Qigong every day to consolidate effect of treatment.
This ailment,
according to TCM, has different syndromes. The treatment for
these syndromes using herbal medicine and acupuncture is shown
below.
Syndrome (a)
Hyperactivity of
Liver-yang
Dizziness, headache, head distension, temperamental
tendency, flushed eyes, bitter taste in the mouth, red
tongue with thin yellow fur, taut and forceful pulse.
To treat byHerbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: By using herbal medicine
you can calm the liver and subdue hyperactivity of the
liver-yang.
Syndrome (b)
Deficiency of
the Liver-yin and Kidney-yin
Headache, vertigo, tinnitus, dryness of eyes, anger,
palpitation, insomnia, poor memory, feverish sensation
in the palms and soles, aching and lassitude of the
loins and legs, dry mouth, red tongue with a little or
no fur, fine and string-like pulse.
To treat by Herbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: By using herbal medicine,
you can nourish yin and suppress your hyperactive yang.
Syndrome (c)
Deficiency of
both yin and yang
Dizziness, tinnitus, amnesia (loss of memory which maybe
partial or total), palpitation, lassitude, soreness of
the loins and knees. Inclination to yang deficiency
gives rise to cold extremities (hands and feet), pale
tongue and deep thready pulse, while inclination to yin
deficiency brings about feverish sensation in the chest,
palms and soles, red tongue and fine rapid pulse.
To treat by Herbal
medicine Therapeutic principle: By using herbal medicine,
you can nourish yin and restore yang.
Prescription/Formula: Modified Decoction of
Curculigo and Epimedium. curculigo rhizome, Rhizoma
Curculiginis 9-15g, epimedium, Herba Epimedii 9-15g,
morinda root, Radix Morindae Officinalis 9g, Chinese
agelica root, Radix Angelica Sinensis 9g, phellodendron
bark,Cortex Phellodendri 9g, anemarrhema rhizome,
Rhizoma Anemarrhenae 9g, eucommia bark, Cortex Eucommiae
12g, achyranthes root, Radix Achyranthis Bidentatae 12g.
All the above drugs are to be decocted in water for oral
administration.
To treat by Acupuncture and
Moxibustion (a) Body Acupuncture
Prescription: Quchi (Li 11) and Taichong (Li 3),
Supplementary Points: For excess of liver-fire,
Fengchi (G 20) and Taiyang (Extra 1) are added; for
excess of phlegm-dampness, Fenglong (S 40), Zhonhwan
(Ren 12) and Neiguan ( P 6); For hyperactivity of yang
due to yin deficiency, Shenshu (B 23), Ganshu (B 18),
Taixi (K 3) and Sanyinjiao (Sp 6).
(b) Ear Acupuncture Prescription: Pt. Heart, Pt. Liver, Pt. Middle
Border. Pt. Groove; for lowering blood pressure, Pt.
Shenmen and Pt. Ear Apex.
(c) Scalp Acupuncture Prescription: Foot motor sensory area (bilatera),
Thoracic area, and Vasomotor area.
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. Dried-Chrysanthemum Flower(Ganjuhua) 12g,
Hawthorn Fruit(Shanzha) 12g. Grind the herbs
into powder. Put 50g of polished round-grained
rice(Jingmi) in water 400ml, and make gruel,
then add in the herbal powder and appropriate
crystal sugar, continue boiling a few minutes.
Take it twice a day, no to be taken in winter.
2. Celery Stem(Qincai) 60g, Red Date(Dazao) 30g,
decoct them in water to make tea. Drink it twice
a day, continue drinking one month or longer.
3. Helpful food: Onion(Yangcong), Galic(suan),
Shepherd,s Purse(Kunbu), Mushroom,
Tremella(Yin'er).
(c) Life style
1. Keep in good mood.
2. Take precaution against overweight.
3. Try not to be overtired.
4. Quit smoking and limit drinking wine
5. Do appropriate exercise.
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.