Wind-phlegm obstruction

"Wind-phlegm obstruction" (Chinese: 风痰; pinyin: Fēng Tán) is a diagnostic pattern in Traditional Chinese Medicine that describes the combined presence of pathological wind and phlegm, believed to obstruct the channels and sensory orifices. It is not a discrete anatomical or molecular entity, but rather reflects a set of clinical symptoms such as dizziness, coughing with phlegm, numbness in the limbs, rattling in the throat, a heavy/clouded sensation in the head, and sometimes neurological disturbances such as aphasia or even stroke-like presentations. Wind-phlegm obstruction most commonly results from lifestyle and dietary factors impairing the spleen's "transformation" function, which allows dampness and phlegm to accumulate; rising liver wind carries this phlegm upwards, causing blockages in meridians orifices, especially in the head or upper body. Treatment in TCM typically includes herbal formulas such as Ban Xia Bai Zhu Tian Ma Tang, which aim to "dispel wind" and "resolve phlegm," and may also use acupuncture points focused on the lung, stomach, and spleen meridians. This is a syndrome concept unique to TCM, not a recognized biomedical therapeutic target. In summary, Wind-phlegm obstruction is a TCM pattern, not a molecular or receptor target, and cannot be mapped onto conventional pharmacological or biomolecular frameworks.

Other names

Wind-phlegmWind-phlegm obstruction patternFeng Tan (风痰)

Not applicable. However, classical TCM herbal formulas are believed (in TCM theory) to "resolve phlegm" and "expel wind" by modulating qi, drying dampness, and subduing internal wind.