Wind-heat cold is caused by wind-heat pathogens invading the exterior and disrupting the harmony of lung qi. Symptoms include high fever, slight aversion to wind, headache, sweating, sore throat with redness and swelling, cough with sticky or yellow phlegm, yellow nasal discharge, thirst, red tongue tip and edges, and a thin white or slightly yellow tongue coating. In traditional Chinese medicine, wind-heat cold can be treated with pungent and cooling exterior-releasing formulas, such as "Yinqiao San" or "Sangju Yin".
In Western medicine, there is no distinction between fever and heat. All colds are collectively referred to as upper respiratory tract infection, or simply SARS. Most of them are caused by viral infections and can be treated with antiviral drugs, such as "ribavirin" or "ribavirin". Viruses have a self-limiting effect and usually take about a week to get better. Medication only reduces or eliminates the symptoms.
Based on etiology, colds are classified into three types: wind-cold, wind-heat, and summer-heat. Wind-heat type colds are characterized by high fever, slight chills, headache, runny nose with sticky or yellow discharge, sore throat, cough with thick yellow phlegm, thirst, and a yellow or dry tongue coating. Treatment should focus on clearing lung heat and relieving exterior symptoms with pungent and cooling herbs. Suitable medications include Yinqiao Jiedu Pills, Sangju Cold Tablets, Lingyang Cold Tablets, or Cold and Fever Relief Granules. Wind-cold type colds are characterized by headache without sweating, limb pain, nasal congestion, runny nose with clear discharge, cough with thin white phlegm, no thirst, and a white tongue coating. Treatment should focus on pungent and warm herbs to relieve exterior symptoms and dispel cold. Suitable Chinese patent medicines include Cold and Fever Granules, Tongxuan Lifei Pills, and Xiaochaihu Tablets.
For summer-heat type colds, the treatment should focus on clearing heat and relieving summer heat, and clearing heat from the Qi level. Huoxiang Zhengqi granules or oral liquid can be used. Finally, let's clarify a few easily confused concepts. Viral colds do not necessarily mean wind-heat colds. "Virus" is a Western medicine term; Traditional Chinese Medicine focuses more on the body as a whole. Therefore, it is incorrect for some doctors to treat viral colds as wind-heat colds. Sore throat is not the key to distinguishing between wind-heat and wind-cold colds, as wind-cold colds often cause sore throats as well. Similarly, cough, runny nose, and high fever cannot differentiate between these two types of colds.
(1) Rest in bed appropriately, drink plenty of water, eat light and easily digestible food, and those who have not quit smoking should quit smoking at this time. This is especially important for patients with chronic bronchitis.
(2) For fever, headache, and joint and muscle pain, you can take aspirin orally, 0.3 grams each time, 3 times a day; or APC, 0.42 grams each time, 3 times a day. You can also take pain relievers, ibuprofen or indomethacin orally; you can also inject aminopyrine or Bupleurum injections into the muscles.
(3) For those with severe nasal congestion and runny nose, 1% ephedrine solution, neomycin solution or nasal decongestant can be used, 2-3 drops each time, 3 times a day. Oral antihistamines such as loratadine, 10 mg each time, once a day can also be taken orally; chlorpheniramine, promethazine or ketotifen can also be taken orally.
(4) For sore throat, you can suck on lysozyme tablets, Four Seasons Soothing Throat Tablets, Iodine Throat Tablets, Dumifen Throat Tablets, or Grass Coral Throat Tablets, etc. Choose one type and suck on it several times a day, 1 to 2 tablets each time.
(5) For dry cough without phlegm, take cough suppressant 20 mg each time, 3 times a day; cough suppressant 25-50 mg each time, 3 times a day; or take brown compound. For cough with phlegm, take cough suppressant 16 mg each time, 3 times a day; or take polygala compound 10 ml each time, 3 times a day.
(6) Take antiviral drugs, such as ribavirin, ribavirin, polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid, etc. Transfer factor can also be used.
(7) Taking compound preparations such as fast-acting cold capsules, cold relief, and cold clearing can have antipyretic, analgesic and anti-allergic effects.
