

Sore throat, counterflow qi (vomiting), coughing, hiccups. Regulation of Blood Pressure - lowering high blood pressure. View ST 9 (Man's Prognosis) Level with the tip of the Adam's Apple on the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoideus muscle (where the pulse of … In ancient times the ST Qi was assessed by palpating the pulse here and at ST 42.Opens the chest and circulation in the breasts - breast pain, insufficient lactation. Descends qi - chest oppression, shortness of breath, cough, hiccup, running piglet disorder. View SP 18 (Celestial Ravine) 6 cun lateral to the anterior midline in the 4th inter-costal space.Pain, hiccups, vomiting, harmonizes stomach.įertility issues involving stagnation in the lower warmer. Local Point for abdominal and intestinal issues. View KD 18 (Stone Pass) 3 cun above CV 8.While initially complex, this is illustrative of the the web of relationships that Chinese Medicine is designed to approach. Many times there will be a layered combination of patterns in an interwoven blend with their symptoms - some being the cause of an issue and the result of another issue. In clinical situations, however, there are any number of other possibilities. Within TCM, "hiccups" is potentially related to one or more of the following diagnostic patterns: stomach cold, stomach fire, and/or stomach qi deficiency. the "cause(s)".įor non-practitioners, we recommend reading treating the "cause" and not the "symptoms" for more on the overall approach and the importance of the TCM diagnostic system in formulating treatment approaches. Alternatively, a practitioner is looking at the factors that led to the development of "hiccups" - i.e. The line above the 'u' is called a macron and its use in phonetics denotes a long vowel sound 4.It is critical to appreciate that in Chinese Medicine, treatment for "hiccups" is rarely focused on the symptoms exclusively. As a fourth declension noun, its plural form is singultūs. Singultus is the Latin for sobbing, gasping. In addition for the more serious chronic intractable form there are pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions. Initially therapy is directed to the specific cause. Treatment and prognosisįolk remedies abound for the treatment of acute hiccups. The features of the underlying causes are described in their respective articles. hyponatraemia, hypokalaemia, hypocalcaemia, hypocapnia More than 100 causes have been identified 1,3: Neurotransmitters implicated include GABA and dopamine. nerve supply to the responsible musculature including the diaphragm, anterior scalenes, intercostals, and glottis.likely involvement of the brainstem and hypothalamus.nerves within the phrenic and vagus nerves, and also the thoracic sympathetic chain.The currently accepted hypothesis is that hiccups occur secondary to dysfunction of the swallowing reflex arc, of which there are three main components 1: PathologyĬuriously for such a common, everyday phenomenon, the direct cause and pathogenesis of this symptom remains unknown. Intractable hiccups, sometimes defined as those lasting more than two months, can be very disabling, causing inability to sleep, depression, and chronic exhaustion, with secondary deleterious effects on an individual's health.

Clinical presentationĪcute hiccups are those lasting less than 48 hours, and are usually self-limiting.Ĭhronic, persistent hiccups refers to any episode with a duration greater than 48 hours.

Hiccups are a symptom that has probably been experienced by everyone at some point in their lives.
