GU SYNDROME

Etiology
  • Gu pathogens are malicious and have life-threatening consequences
  • Gu pathogens primarily enter the body through food
  • Gu pathogens represent a type of toxin
  • Gu pathogens have a virulent epidemic quality
  • Gu pathogens are most likely to thrive in already deficient organisms, and once established further harm the body’s source Qi
  • Gu pathogens operate in the dark. It is often unclear when and how the pathogen was contracted, making an accurate diagnosis extremely difficult
  • Some of the typical Gu symptoms cited in the literature refer to the familiar picture of acute protozoan infection
  • It is the distinct presence of mental symptoms that (usually in combination with digestive problems) that is the most consistently acknowledged element
  • A patient may live with this condition for his/her whole life without necessarily dying form it
Clinical Manifestations
  • Digestive symptoms:
    Chronic diarrhea
    Loose stools or
    Alternating diarrhea and constipation
    Explosive bowel movements
    Abdominal bloating
    Ascites
    Abdominal cramping and/or pain
    Nausea
    Intestinal bleeding and/or pus
    Poor appetite or
    Ravenous appetite
    Peculiar food cravings
    Vomiting
    Bloody stools
  • Neuromuscular symptoms:
    Muscle soreness
    Muscle heaviness
    Muscle weakness
    Wandering body pains
    Physical Heat sensations
    Cold night sweats
    Extremities to feel heavy and ache all over
    Aversion to bright light
    Desires to lay in a dark room
  • Mental symptoms:
    Depression
    Depression that alternates with periods of sudden happiness
    Frequent suicidal thoughts
    Flaring anger
    Fits of rage
    Unpredictable onset of strong yet volatile emotions
    Inner restlessness
    Insomnia
    A general sense of muddledness and confusion
    Chaotic thought patterns
    Visual and/or auditory hallucinations
    Epileptic seizures
    A sensation of “feeling possessed”
  • Constitutional signs:
    Progressing state of mental and physical exhaustion
    Indications of Yuan Qi damage
    Dark circles underneath the eyes
    Mystery symptoms that evade clear diagnosis
    A history of acute protozoan infection
    A history of travel to tropical regions
    T: Red tip or Red ‘parasite dots’ on top with stagnation in sublingual veins (Parasite dots Chong Ban are little red dots that generally cluster on the front third of the tongue [shining through a greasy tongue coating] and sometimes extending to the middle. They are often said to be indicative of worms and other parasites [especially when observed in children]. They are a sign of “localized Heat” amidst the Dampness, an energetic environment that, while different from Damp-Heat, is typical for most parasitic disorders.)
    C: Rooted and Damp
    P: Floating and big pulse or Choppy
  • A violent reaction to Ginseng Ren Shen may be one of the diagnostic features of the disease.
  • Gu syndrome traditionally warrants the presence of particularly vicious parasites or a super infection of many different kinds of parasites that combine their toxic potential to gradually putrefy the patient’s body and mind. From a modern perspective this definition of Gu syndrome points to aggressive helminthic, protozoan, fungal, spirochete or viral afflictions that have become systemic in an immune-compromised patient.
Treatment Principle
Food
  • Avoid (during or after the Gu treatment): chicken, duck, fish,
    shrimp, snails, gecko, snakes, insects of all kinds. Also food
    items that “easily breed worms” should be avoided, especially all forms of sugar, honey, jujube dates and other sweet substances.
  • Consume in increased amounts: tofu, celery, cabbage, spinach,
    lotus root, shiso (perilla) leaves, peppermint, garlic, horseradish, ginger, bitter melon, black mu’er fungus, lychee, longan, oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, plums, pomegranates, watermelon, vinegar, green tea, lamb and pork. However, if any of these items should aggravate the condition, it should also be avoided.
Points
  • Garlic moxa UB-43, moxa ST-36, UB-13, Guikuxie (Descriptions of its location are not exact. It is said that the thumbs should be tied together so that the nails face each other and that the point is found at the crease between the nails “half on the nail and half on the flesh”. One opinion is that it is located at the mid level of the thumb nails just distal to LU-11. Another is that it corresponds to Shaoshang LU-11 when this point is used for mental disturbance and treated by moxibustion with the thumbs facing each other so one cone treats both thumbs. One source says of this point “If moxibusted, the demon will come forth wailing, revealing its name”.)
  • Selectively needle the Thirteen Demon (Ghost) Points:
    DU-26 (Demon Palace)
    LU-11 (Demon Evidence)
    SP-1 (Demon Pile)
    PC-7 (Demon Center)
    UB -62 (Demon Path)
    DU-16 (Demon Pillow)
    ST-6 (Demon Bed)
    REN-24 (Demon Market)
    PC-8 (Demon Hole)
    DU-23 (Demon Hall) Shangxing
    REN-1 in males (Demon Hideout)
       Yumen (head of the clitoris) in females
    LI-11 (Demon Leg)
    Haiquan (under the tongue) (Demon Envelope)
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Alternating chills and fever
  • Dry throat
  • Bitter or sour taste in the mouth
  • Dizziness
  • Sensation of fullness in the chest and hypochondrium
  • Irritability
  • Heartburn
  • Chest distention
  • Difficulty taking deep breaths
  • Hardness beneath the Heart
  • Hypochondriac pain with pressure
  • Stress
  • Being downcast with no desire to eat
  • Anorexia
  • Vertigo
  • May be palpitations
  • Dysphoria
  • Retching
  • Abdominal pain
  • Stomach ache
  • Reduced appetite
  • Subcostal bloating
  • Depression
  • Amenorrhea
  • Tendency to diarrhea
  • Nervousness
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • May be urinary dysfunction
  • Restlessness
  • Sometimes fatigue
  • Headaches (side of head)
  • Rib pain
  • Achiness
  • Ear infection
  • Hearing difficulty
  • Red eyes
  • Stiff shoulders
  • Throat pain
  • Hip pain
  • T: Pink
  • C: Thin and white
  • P: Wiry
Treatment Principle
  • Harmonize the Liver and Gall Bladder
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Fever and chills without sweat
  • Headache
  • Body aches
  • Stiff neck and back
  • Abdominal pain and Cold
  • Diarrhea with borborygmus
  • A sensation of fullness in the chest and abdomen
  • May be Cold in the lower body with Heat in the upper body
  • Aching at the waist
  • Anhidrosis
  • Loose stools
  • Nausea
  • Abdominal distention
  • Borborygmus
  • An aversion to food
  • Vomiting
  • Women:
    Cold-type epigastric and abdominal pain
  • Menstrual irregularity
  • Dysmenorrhea
  • T: Normal
  • C: White and greasy
  • P: Deep and wiry or Superficial and slow
Treatment Principle
  • Release the Exterior
  • Warm the Interior
  • Smooth the flow of Qi
  • Transform Phlegm
  • Invigorate the Blood
  • Reduce Accumulations
  • Regulate Qi and Blood
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Palpitations
  • Irritability
  • Anxiety
  • Easily startled
  • Insomnia
  • Much dreaming
  • Poor memory
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face and lips
  • Fatigue
  • Loose stools
  • Poor appetite
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face
  • Weak voice
  • Reluctance to speak
  • Sweating with little or no exertion
  • Dry skin
  • Dry hair
  • Scanty periods
  • Severe, dry hacking cough or
  • A chronic dry cough
  • No sputum expectorated
  • Small amounts of difficult to expectorate sputum
  • Blood tinged sputum (when Yin Deficiency Fire is present)
  • Afternoon fever
  • Night sweats
  • Malar flush (especially in afternoon)
  • Five sole Heat
  • Dry mouth and throat
  • Itching in throat
  • Hoarse voice, low voice or loss of voice
  • Emaciation
  • T: Pale or Red and dry
  • C: None or Thin and white
  • P: Thready and rapid or Weak or Thin and choppy
Treatment Principle
  • Calm the Shen
  • Descend Qi
  • Nourish Heart Blood and Lung Yin
  • Open the Orifices
  • Remove Phlegm in the Upper Jiao
  • Promote the movement of Qi
  • Invigorate the Blood
  • Aromatically transform Dampness
  • Expel Damp-Heat
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Inflammation, swelling, pain, numbness and degeneration in the joints, sinews and connective tissue
  • Dizziness
  • Tinnitus or deafness
  • Poor memory
  • Aching, soreness or weakness of the low back
  • Spermatorrhea or
  • Premature ejaculation
  • Aching in the bones
  • Aching in the leg and heel
  • Dry mouth
  • Thirst
  • Night sweats
  • Five Sole Heat
  • Malar flush
  • Low grade fever in the afternoon
  • Dry throat, maybe recurrent sore throat
  • Dry stools and/or
  • Constipation
  • Urine short and red
  • Heightened libido
  • Maybe insomnia
  • Maybe frequent dreams
    Maybe blurred vision
  • T: Red or Pink or Pale
  • C: Little or None or Thin and white or Greasy and white
  • P: Thready and rapid or Superficial and tight or Wiry and tight or Slow, moderate and soft
Treatment Principle
  • Dispel Wind-Damp
  • Warm the channels
  • Dispel Stagnation
  • Calm the Shen
  • Clear Heat
  • Nourish Yin
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Fatigue
  • Loose stools
  • Poor appetite
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face
  • Weak voice
  • Reluctance to speak
  • Sweating with little or no exertion
  • Palpitations
  • Insomnia
  • Dry skin
  • Dry hair
  • Poor memory
  • Paleness
  • Scanty periods
  • Chronic dry cough
  • Afternoon fever
  • Night sweats
  • Malar flush (especially in afternoon)
  • Five Sole Heat
  • Dry mouth and throat
  • Itching in throat
  • Hoarse voice, low voice or loss of voice
  • Emaciation
  • T: Pale or Pale, thin and dry or Red and dry
  • C: None or Thin and white
  • P: Thready and rapid or Weak or Thin and choppy
Treatment Principle
  • Dispel Wind-Dampness
  • Clear Heat
  • Resolve toxicity
  • Nourishes Yin and Blood
  • Invigorate the Blood
  • Dispel Blood Stasis
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Chronic diarrhea
  • Loose stools or
  • Alternating diarrhea and constipation
  • Explosive bowel movements
  • Abdominal bloating
  • Ascites
  • Abdominal cramping and/or pain
  • Nausea
  • Intestinal bleeding and/or pus
  • Poor appetite or
  • Ravenous appetite
  • Night sweats
  • Dry mouth
  • Tinnitus
  • Muscle soreness
  • Muscle heaviness
  • Muscle weakness
  • Wandering body pains
  • Depression
  • Fatigue
  • Loose stools
  • Anorexia
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face
  • Weak voice
  • Reluctance to speak
  • Sweating with little or no exertion
  • T: Variable
  • C: Variable
  • P: Weak or Weak and rapid or Weak, soft and floating
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Heat
  • Resolve Fire Toxicity
  • Disperse External Wind
  • Promote the movement of Qi
  • Tonify the Lungs and Spleen
  • Tonify Qi
  • Nourish Yin
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Arthralgia involving one or several joints of the extremities
  • Knee swelling is frequent
  • Local redness and Heat
  • Swelling with excruciating pain
  • Severe limitation of movement
  • Pain better during the day and worse at night
  • The pain is relieved by Cold
  • Fever
  • Sometimes slight chills and fever
  • Thirst
  • Dryness of the mouth and tongue
  • Irritability
  • Nervousness
  • Restlessness
  • Aversion to Heat
  • Desire for Cold drinks
  • Dark urine
  • Yang jaundice (sclera and skin bright yellow)
  • Pain and fullness in ribs on both sides
  • Maybe pain in the right hypochondrium
  • Bitter taste in mouth
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting sour and bitter fluids
  • Anorexia
  • Maybe alternating chills and fever
  • Concentrated, dark urine
  • Abdominal distention
  • Women:
    Yellow vaginal discharge with foul smell
    Pruritis vulvae
  • Men:
    Pain, swelling and burning sensations of testicles
  • T: Pink or Red
  • C: Yellow and greasy or sticky
  • P: Rolling and rapid maybe slippery Wiry and rapid or Slippery and rapid
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Toxic Heat
  • Transform Damp Heat
  • Transform toxic Phlegm
  • Dispel Wind-Damp
  • Invigorate the Blood
  • Open blocked collaterals
  • Alleviate pain
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Protracted, incessant cough
  • Expectoration of copious, clear, watery or white Phlegm
  • Short, weak, breathing
  • Asthma
  • Four limbs tired
  • Anorexia
  • General lassitude
  • Distention and pain of the epigastrium and abdomen
  • Loose stools
  • Severe cases:
    Frightens easily
  • T: Pale
  • C: White
  • P: Thready and weak
Treatment Principle
  • Tonify the Spleen and Lungs
  • Tonify Qi
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Diarrhea with tenesmus which intensifies after defecation
  • Frequent stools which are small in quantity
  • Stools are yellow or brown, thin, watery, with foul smell or sticky and pasty like jam or sticky fluid or containing pus and Blood
  • Burning hot sensation in anus
  • Abdominal pain
  • Urine short and red
  • Sustained fever despite profuse perspiration or
  • Raging fever in the afternoon
  • Severe cases:
    High fever and coma
  • Mouth dry but no desire to drink
  • Body heavy
  • Limbs tired
  • Fullness in chest
  • Lump in epigastrium
  • Anorexia
  • Vomiting
  • T: Red
  • C: Yellow and greasy
  • P: Slippery and rapid
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Heat
  • Transform Dampness
  • Stop dysentery
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Epigastric focal distention
  • Fullness and tightness with very slight or no pain
  • Dry heaves
  • Vomiting
  • Borborygmus
  • Diarrhea
  • Anorexia
  • Stomach pain
  • Abdominal pain
  • Subcardiac distention
  • Heartburn
  • Resistance below the Heart
  • Soft epigastrium
  • Nausea
  • Ascites
  • Gurgling sounds
  • T: Normal or with a red tip
  • C: Thin, yellow and greasy
  • P: Wiry and rapid or Wiry, tight and rapid
Treatment Principle
  • Harmonize the Stomach
  • Descend Rebellious Qi
  • Disperse clumping
  • Eliminate focal distention due to Cold and Heat factors
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Irritability
  • Short temper
  • Restlessness
  • Fever or tidal fever
  • Red eyes
  • Dry mouth and throat
  • Palpitations
  • Lower abdominal pain
  • Difficult urination
  • Painful urination
  • Increased menstrual flow
  • Uterine bleeding
  • Early menstruation
  • Aching in limbs
  • Dizziness
  • Mental instability
  • Red face
  • Thirst
  • Turbid urine
  • Alternating chills and fever
  • Red cheeks
  • Wheezing
  • Nervousness
  • Headache
  • Red eyes
  • Dry mouth
  • Anorexia
  • Infertility
  • Abdominal pain
  • Spontaneous sweating or night sweats with fever
  • Anxiety
  • Dry eyes
  • Hypochondriac pain
  • Anorexia
  • Somnolence
  • Insomnia
  • Aching shoulders
  • Five sole Heat
  • Earache
  • Premenstrual tension
  • Hot flashes
  • Fatigue
  • Lassitude
  • Depression
  • Restlessness
  • Constipation with flushing up
  • Pale complexion
  • Bitter taste in mouth
  • Vertigo
  • Abdominal distention near the umbilicus
  • Epistaxis
  • Irregular menstruation
  • Heaviness in the lower abdomen
  • T:Red or Red edges
  • C: Thin and yellow
  • P: Thready, rapid and wiry or Wiry and tight and rapid
Treatment Principle
  • Calm the Liver
  • Spread Liver Qi
  • Strengthen the Spleen
  • Nourish the Blood
  • Sedate the Heart
  • Clear Heat
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Abdominal distention and pain
  • Gas
  • Borborygmus
  • Diarrhea
  • Distention and pain in the sides or flanks
  • Suffocating sensation in the chest
  • Tendency to sigh
  • Melancholy
  • Depression
  • Irritability
  • Inappropriate anger
  • Women:
    Irregular menses
    Dysmenorrhea
    Breast distention and pain before and during menses
  • T: Pink
  • C: White and greasy
  • P: Slippery and wiry
Treatment Principle
  • Soothe the Liver
  • Invigorate the Spleen
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Chills
  • Cold limbs
  • Inability to get warm
  • Loose stools
  • Profuse clear urine
  • Spontaneous sweating
  • Lassitude
  • T: Pale
  • C: White
  • P: Slow, deep and weak
Treatment Principle
  • TonifY the Spleen, Lungs and Kidneys
  • Warm Yang
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Fatigue
  • Loose stools
  • Anorexia
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face
  • Weak voice
  • Reluctance to speak
  • Sweating with little or no exertion
  • T: Pale
  • C: White
  • P: Empty
Treatment Principle
  • Tonify Qi
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Fatigue
  • Loose stools
  • Poor appetite
  • Dizziness
  • Pale face
  • Weak voice
  • Reluctance to speak
  • Sweating with little or no exertion
  • Palpitations
  • Insomnia
  • Dry skin
  • Dry hair
  • Poor memory
  • Paleness
  • Scanty periods
  • Pain that is fixed, stabbing and /or severe or
  • Pains that move around
  • Distention
  • Depression
  • Irritability
  • Pan is worse with pressure
  • Dark complexion
  • Fixed, palpable masses
  • Bleeding with clots
  • Purple lips
  • Purple nails
  • Dry skin
  • Blue, dark or purplish discoloration of skin in small or large areas,
  • Varicose and spider veins
  • Cold hands and feet
  • Tendency to hemorrhage dark blood or clots
  • T: Pale or Pale, thin and dry or Purple, possible purple or red spots
  • C: White
  • P: Weak or Thin and choppy or Choppy or Wiry and choppy
Treatment Principle
  • Tonify Qi
  • Regulate Qi
  • Nourish the Blood
  • Invigorate the Blood.
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Bloating
  • Swelling
  • Madness
  • Depression
  • Epilepsy
  • Flu-like symptoms
    Coughing
    Sneezing
  • A tight abdominal wall
  • Dark urine
  • The patient usually gets worse after ingesting tonics
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Heat
  • Relieve toxicity
  • Expel turbid filth
  • Harmonize the Middle Jiao
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Sudden collapse
  • Loss of consciousness
  • Clenched jaws
  • Fullness, extreme pain, and a cold sensation in the chest and abdomen
  • Purple or blue lips
  • Sudden loss of consciousness
  • Coma
  • An urge to vomit and defecate without doing either
  • Abdominal pain with chest distention
  • Mental upset
  • Paraphasia
  • Diarrhea
  • Vomiting
  • Excessive mucus and saliva
  • Breath cold
  • Pale complexion
  • Cold extremities
  • Staring eyes
  • T Pale
  • C: White and slippery or greasy
  • P: Deep and slippery or Deep, excess and slow or Wiry, tight and Excess
Treatment Principle
  • Warm and Aromatically Open the Orifices
  • Move Qi
  • Expel filth
  • Transform turbidity
  • Clear Phlegm
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • Cough with sticky, yellow, difficult to expectorate sputum
  • Rapid breathing with a harsh voice
  • Restless fever
  • Sore throat
  • Constipation
  • Dry stools
  • Mania
  • Shortness of breath
  • Dyspnea
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Chest and/or epigastric fullness
  • Pain in the ribs
  • T: Scarlet
  • C: Yellow or Yellow and greasy or Yellow and smooth
  • P: Rapid and smooth or Slippery and rapid
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Heat
  • Resolve Phlegm
Herb Formulas
Points
Clinical Manifestations
  • Gu symptoms +
  • High fever
  • Irritability
  • Fidgeting
  • Dry mouth
  • Dry throat
  • Incoherent speech
  • Insomnia
  • Dark urine
  • Deep-rooted boils
  • Maculae
  • Carbuncles
  • Hematemesis
  • Hemoptysis
  • Palpitations
  • Furuncles
  • Tinnitus
  • Purpura
  • Red face
  • Rashes
  • Deep-rooted boils
  • Red eyes
  • Itchy skin
  • Fidgeting
  • Dry lips
  • Delirium
  • Dysentery with fever
  • Jaundice
  • Epistaxis
  • Hematuria
  • Cloudy mind
  • Diarrhea
  • T: Red
  • C: Yellow
  • P: Rapid and forceful
Treatment Principle
  • Clear Heat
  • Drain Fire
  • Relieve toxicity from all three Jiaos
Herb Formulas
Points