Jaundice

A condition characterized by the three classic signs of yellow skin, yellow eyes, and yellow urine, i.e., generalized yellowing of the body, yellowing of the whites of the eyes (sclera), and darker-than-normal urine. Jaundice arises when contraction of seasonal evils or dietary irregularities cause damp-heat or cold-damp to obstruct the center burner, and prevents bile from flowing according to its normal course. For different jaundice patterns, see entries listed below.

Theories about the cause of jaundice have varied over the centuries. The Inner Classic (内经 nèi jīng) established the notion that it was due damp-heat and hence largely associated with the spleen. Subsequent generations of physicians elaborated various specific pathomechanisms without changing this basic understanding. In the Jīn-Yuan period, the distinction between yīn jaundice and yáng jaundice gained widespread acceptance. In the Míng Dynasty, Zhāng Jǐng-Yuè proposed the term 胆黄 dǎn huáng, gallbladder jaundice, claiming that the disease arose when damage to gallbladder qì caused bile to discharge, i.e., leak from the gallbladder and flow to the skin. In the Qīng Dynasty, Shěn Jīn-Áo (沈金鳌) also observed a contagious form of jaundice that he called heaven-current epidemic scourge, which he nevertheless believed to be attributable to damp-heat. In A Clinical Guide with Case Histories (临证指南医案 lín zhèng zhǐ nán yī àn) of 1766, the theories of damp-heat and gallbladder involvement are combined.

Etymology

Chin 黄 huáng, yellow; 疸 dǎn, jaundice. The huáng was added to prevent confusion arising from homophones of dǎn. Eng jaundice from Old French jaunice (modern jaunisse), jaune, yellow, + ice, noun suffix.

Jaundice

• Yáng jaundice
• Yīn jaundice
• Acute jaundice
• Scourge jaundice
• Vacuity jaundice
• Gallbladder jaundice
• Five jaundices
• Grain jaundice
• Liquor jaundice
• Black jaundice
• Yellow sweat
• Damp-heat jaundice
• Blood amassment yellowing