The pulse: From pulse to pattern

A deep, slow, forceless pulse with a pale swollen tongue. Which pattern?

1. Excess heat
2. Yang deficiency
3. Liver qi stagnation

Blood deficiency with scanty periods, dizziness on standing and brittle nails. What pulse do you expect?

1. Thin, perhaps slightly fast, forceless
2. Wide, full and fast
3. Slippery and forceful

Does the pulse support the diagnosis or contradict it?

• A stagnation diagnosis with a wiry pulseSupports itContradicts it
• A qi deficiency diagnosis with a full, forceful pulseSupports itContradicts it
• A damp diagnosis with a slippery pulseSupports itContradicts it
• An internal cold diagnosis with a fast, superficial pulseSupports itContradicts it
• A yin deficiency diagnosis with a wide, slow pulseSupports itContradicts it
• A recent exterior picture with a superficial pulseSupports itContradicts it

A patient in acute pain has a wiry, fast pulse. Which part of the finding is most useful?

1. The speed, which confirms heat
2. None: pain falsifies the pulse entirely
3. Knowing that pain itself tightens the pulse, so you weight the tension down and lean on the other axes

Order the reasoning that goes from pulse to pattern.

1. Rule out artefacts: hurry, coffee, cold, effort↑↓
2. Place the four axes↑↓
3. Derive what nature and what strength they suggest↑↓
4. Check whether they agree with the tongue and the interview↑↓
5. Name the pattern or flag the discrepancy↑↓

Match each pattern with the pulse you expect.