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What is pulse diagnosis? We are all familiar with a medical professional taking our pulse to determine our heart rate. In East Asian medicine, taking the pulse is much more than that. The technique used to take the pulse in East Asian medicine makes available to the practitioner a whole world of information about the patient that assists in the proper diagnosis and treatment of the individual. We begin by placing 3 fingers on the artery on the wrist. Each finger rests on an area that corresponds to the energetic organ systems, and as we are feeling the pulse, we evaluate specific qualities. There are 36 pulse qualities. We feel for the strength of the pulse - is it strong or weak, excess or deficient, superficial or deep? What is the speed of the pulse - fast or slow? All of these qualities are considered, along with the palpation of the meridians and abdomen, the appearance of the tongue, the coloration of the skin, how the patient’s voice sounds, and the overall symptoms which are presented, to make the correct diagnosis for an appropriate and beneficial treatment. |
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