Traditional Chinese medicine divides skin itching into five categories, and these Chinese patent medicines can be used to treat different syndromes.

Skin pruritus is the most common complaint of patients entering dermatology department. Although it is common, it is difficult to solve. This is because there are many reasons for itchy skin. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that itching is caused by dryness, wind, dampness and other factors acting on the skin and blood deficiency. Understanding the causes of common pruritic skin diseases is helpful for better symptomatic treatment.

Skin pruritus refers to a skin disease that consciously itches without primary damage. Patients often have scratches, papules, scabs, pigmentation, eczema-like transformation and lichen-like transformation due to scratching.

The cause of the disease is still unknown. Western medicine believes that the occurrence of skin itching is related to basic diseases such as diabetes, liver disease and kidney disease, as well as some external factors, such as cold, warmth and chemical fiber fabrics. According to Chinese medicine, deficiency of vegetarian body, deficiency of yin and blood, common cold's obstruction, skin stagnation, struggle between evil and righteousness, and excess of evil will lead to itchy and uncomfortable skin all over the body.

So specifically, what are the causes of skin itching?

In the theory of traditional Chinese medicine, skin pruritus is related to endowment intolerance, and various factors, such as invasion of six evils, emotional internal injuries, improper diet or deficiency of liver and kidney, will lead to weakness of qi and blood, or wind-heat turns to dryness, or blood-heat accumulates, which will lead to diseases.

1, cold

Sun Simiao in the Tang Dynasty wrote, "Prepare thousands of gold for emergencies": "In Su Wen, Feng Yun's evil spirit is in the tendons, but the tendons are weak, and the true qi is divergent ... and it is itchy, so rubella is itchy, all because of this". When the temperature changes suddenly or the weather is cold, the patient's skin itching will be aggravated, and when the weather is hot or sweating, the symptoms will be slightly relieved.

2. Blood deficiency

"Danxi Heart Method" says: "All itching is deficiency, and blood is not proud of muscle carbuncle, so it is itchy." Blood deficiency is more common in elderly patients and prone to occur in autumn and winter. The common symptoms are dry skin, desquamation and lichenoid transformation, often accompanied by blood deficiency syndrome. Pale tongue, less fur, thin or slow pulse, such as chronic dermatitis.

3. Blood fever

"Clinical Guide to Medical Records and Ulcer" points out: "Blood is hot and wind is moving, and the skin is itchy." It shows that itching is closely related to heat. Patients with blood heat may have redness of lips, burning pain of skin, itching and pain at the same time, blood oozing from scratching the epidermis, often accompanied by fever. Red tongue, thin white or thin yellow fur, slippery or rapid pulse, such as acute dermatitis.

4. Rheumatism

Most of them occur in vulva, anus and scrotum. The skin in these parts is swollen, and sometimes there is skin erosion and exudation. Itching caused by dampness always lingers, accompanied by spleen-stomach disharmony syndrome. Fat tongue with white fur and slow or slippery pulse, such as eczema.

5. It's windy

Common cold's patients are characterized by acute itching, severe itching, strong wandering, extensive body, rapid changes, no fixed itching, intermittent itching, often accompanied by exogenous syndrome, such as urticaria.

From the above, we can see that people of different ages can have itchy skin, and severe itching seriously affects the physical and mental health of patients, and can cause secondary damage such as scratches, blood scabs and eczema-like changes. In the treatment of skin pruritus with traditional Chinese medicine, different treatment methods should be adopted according to the specific conditions of patients in order to achieve satisfactory results.

1, blood deficiency and wind dryness type

This syndrome is more common in the elderly, with a long course of disease, characterized by rough and thick skin, dry and chapped skin and severe itching; Accompanied by palpitation, shortness of breath, dizziness and fatigue, pale face and sore limbs; Symptoms such as red tongue, thin white fur, thin or wet pulse. This is caused by blood deficiency and liver hyperactivity and dry wind. The treatment should be to tonify qi and blood, dispel wind and relieve itching; The prescription is prepared from Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Radix Astragali, Radix Rehmanniae, Radix Ophiopogonis, Rhizoma Cimicifugae, Fructus Tribuli, Radix Curcumae, Radix Bupleuri, Fructus Aurantii, Herba Spirodelae and Caulis Polygoni Multiflori.

2. Damp-heat type of spleen and stomach

Itching caused by damp-heat in the spleen and stomach is mostly caused by spleen losing health, dampness accumulation and damp-heat descending. In the patient's anus and vulva, the skin lesions are characterized by paroxysmal itching, skin redness and pain, or pustules, ulceration, erosion and exudation. The general symptoms are bitter taste, chest tightness, loose stool, scanty urine, heavy smell, yellow greasy fur, red tongue and slippery pulse. The treatment is mainly to clear the damp-heat in the lower energizer. Flos Lonicerae, Herba Taraxaci, Xu Changqing, Radix Sophorae Flavescentis, Fructus Kochiae, Rhizoma Acori Graminei, Herba Artemisiae Scopariae, Cortex Dictamni Radicis, Rhizoma Coptidis, Herba Violae, Radix Aucklandiae and Rhizoma Smilacis Glabrae should clear away heat and toxic materials, remove dampness and relieve itching.

3. Blood-heat syndrome

Blood-heat exuberant itching generally occurs in summer, and skin itching is mostly caused by heat toxin. The skin has a common burning sensation and itching is hard to stop. The weather will ease when it is cold, and it will be more serious when it is hot. Patients usually stop scratching until their skin breaks. Everyday, there will be impatience, dry mouth, short and red urine, red tongue or red edge, thin yellow fur, floating pulse or string number. The treatment is mainly to clear away heat and cure the root cause. The prescription uses Radix Angelicae Sinensis, Radix Rehmanniae, Periostracum Cicadae, Rhizoma Anemarrhenae, Radix Sophorae Flavescentis, Cortex Dictamni Radicis, Radix Arnebiae, Flos Sophorae Immaturus, Cortex Moutan, Camptotheca acuminata, Fructus Arctii and Herba Menthae.

Clinically, many skin diseases can cause skin itching, such as urticaria, psoriasis, eczema, skin itching and so on. Itching can spread all over the body or occur locally; There are light and heavy; Continuous, intermittent, and sudden. To treat skin pruritus with traditional Chinese medicine, it is necessary to determine which treatment method to adopt according to the etiology of pruritus. Therefore, skin itching must not be taken lightly. We should actively look for the cause, prescribe the right medicine and remove the inducing factors.

Reprinting is prohibited without the permission and authorization of the author.