What is wind-heat cold?

Written by Guo Xiao Yun
Pulmonology
Updated on January 14, 2025
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Wind-heat cold is a term used in traditional Chinese medicine, referring to a type of cold caused by the invasion of heat into the body. Clinically, it mainly presents with symptoms such as coughing, coughing up purulent sputum, thick and abundant sputum that is difficult to expel, as well as high fever with chills. The body temperature can reach above 39°C within a few hours, and there may also be headaches, dizziness, sore limbs, fatigue, and sore, swollen throat. Therefore, patients with wind-heat cold should drink plenty of water and take some heat-clearing and detoxifying Chinese patent medicines orally. For patients with a body temperature higher than 38.5°C, antipyretic medication such as ibuprofen should be taken orally to reduce the temperature back to normal. In daily life, it is important to focus on a light diet and avoid spicy and irritating foods.

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How to distinguish a viral cold from a cold caused by exposure to cold weather

A cold caused by getting chilled can often present the same symptoms as a viral cold. This type of cold refers to a situation where, after exposure to cold, an individual's immune system becomes weakened, allowing pathogens residing in the respiratory tract to proliferate rapidly and thus cause a cold. In many cases, a cold from getting chilled is also viral in nature. Symptoms commonly seen in individuals with colds may include runny nose, sneezing, nasal congestion, sore throat, coughing, headache, muscle aches, fatigue, and sometimes a mild fever. However, sometimes a cold due to chilling may also lead to infection by other pathogens, such as bacteria, which can present clinically differently from a viral cold. In such cases, patients might not exhibit typical symptoms like clear nasal discharge or sneezing; instead, they might only show nonspecific upper respiratory symptoms. It is also possible for them to experience high fever, obvious sore throat, and swelling of the tonsils, which are signs of acute purulent tonsillitis, a specific type of bacterial cold.

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How to physically reduce fever when having a cold?

There are many methods of physical cooling in clinical practice. The most commonly used is to choose warm water, or to wipe areas such as the palms, soles, neck, and chest with alcohol. It should be noted that infants should not use alcohol. You can also drink more ginger sugar water or scallion water, or use cool towels, ice packs, etc., to apply cold compresses to the forehead. These can achieve the effect of physically reducing fever. Be sure to drink plenty of water and measure the temperature again two hours later. If the fever does not ease, it is necessary to use medication in a timely manner.

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How to quickly alleviate the discomfort of a cold?

In treating a cold, it is important to select symptomatic medications. If symptoms such as discomfort, body ache, or fatigue are caused by a fever, appropriate fever-reducing measures should be taken based on the severity of the fever. If the body temperature does not exceed 38°C, physical cooling methods such as wiping the palms, soles, neck, and chest with warm water can be used. If the fever is high, antipyretic analgesic medications should be chosen. In addition, symptomatic treatment with vitamin supplements and medications that suppress gland secretion can help alleviate discomfort.

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What drip should be given for a cold?

A cold is a symptom of nasopharyngeal infection caused by a viral infection, typically characterized by sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, throat discomfort, sore throat, fever, and headache. Generally, a cold can be cured within about a week through rest or symptomatic treatment with medication. Usually, there is no need for an IV drip. However, in some special cases, such as when the patient is young or elderly and weak, and where symptoms of a cold, such as sweating a lot due to fever and lack of appetite, occur, it may be appropriate to administer fluids intravenously.

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The difference between viral influenza and the common cold.

The common cold is mostly caused by viruses and has milder symptoms, mainly including cough, nasal congestion, and runny nose. It tends to resolve on its own, and the whole-body symptoms are mild. Viral colds usually refer to colds where a specific pathogen can be identified, also known as influenza, such as H1N1, H3N2, type A influenza, and type B influenza prevalent in the winter and spring seasons. Its whole-body symptoms are more severe, mainly including fever, sore throat, headache, whole-body muscle soreness, poor spirits, fatigue, and other systemic symptoms.