Autoimmune Liver Disease

|Common Symptoms

Clinical Description:

胃脘痞闷，口苦口黏，口干不欲饮，恶心厌油，食少纳差，胁肋隐痛，腹部胀满，大便黏滞不爽或臭秽，或身目发黄，舌红苔黄腻，脉弦滑数

Plain-Language Explanation:

• The upper abdomen may feel stuffy and congested, as if blocked, leading to a sense of discomfort.
• The mouth may taste bitter and feel sticky, with a noticeable sense of uncleanliness and thick stickiness.
• The mouth may feel dry but without the desire to drink water; even the sight of water does not inspire drinking.
• Nausea may occur, along with an aversion to greasy foods; the mere sight of oil can cause disgust.
• Appetite may be poor, with reduced food intake and a noticeable decline in interest in eating.
• A dull, persistent pain may be felt in the rib area on both sides; the pain is not intense but is constantly present.
• The abdomen may feel distended and tight, with a sensation of fullness, discomfort, and pressure.
• Stools may be sticky and difficult to clean, or foul-smelling; a feeling of incomplete evacuation may remain.
• The skin and eyes may appear yellow, with an overall noticeably yellowish discoloration.
• The tongue may appear red with a yellow, greasy coating, and the tongue surface looks sticky.
• The pulse may feel taut like a string, slippery, and somewhat rapid, giving an impression of hastiness.

|TCM Approach

Clinical Description:

清利肝胆，清热利湿

Plain-Language Explanation:

• By clearing heat accumulated in the liver and gallbladder and promoting the smooth flow of bile, this approach helps regulate qi movement, thereby alleviating discomfort such as rib-side distension and pain, bitter taste and dry mouth, chest and hypochondrium tightness, red eyes, or dark urine.
• By using heat-clearing and dampness-draining methods, it resolves and expels heat and dampness from the body, helping to relieve stuffiness and stickiness, body heaviness and fatigue, sticky mouth sensation, thick greasy tongue coating, scanty dark urine, upper abdominal distension and tightness, nausea, and poor appetite.