Discussion on Syndrome Differentiation and Treatment of Mild and Moderate Acne Vulgaris Based on the Theories of “Acne Due to Stagnation of Qi” and “Five Pathogenic Stagnations” in the <i>Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor</i>

《素问·生气通天论》曰“劳汗当风，寒薄为皶，郁乃痤”，“郁乃痤”是痤疮的核心病机，“郁”是痤疮分型辨证中的共性病理特点。《素问·六元正纪大论》提出“木郁达之，火郁发之，土郁夺之，金郁泄之，水郁折之”的“五郁”治法，暗合天人相应，为中医“五郁”之理论源流。寻常型痤疮是主要发生于人体面颊、前额、胸部、背部的毛囊、皮脂腺的损美性皮肤病，临床以“郁”为核心，常见虚实寒热夹杂之证，与营卫失调、气血失和密切相关。经云“有诸内必形诸外”。The “Liquids and Gases Communicating with Heaven” chapter of the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor states, “Exertion and sweating in the wind, with coldness penetrating, causes acne; stagnation leads to acne.” “Stagnation leads to acne” is the core pathogenesis of acne, and “stagnation” is the common pathological feature in the differentiation and classification of acne. The “Five Pathogenic Stagnations” treatment methods, namely “release the depression of wood, disperse the depression of fire, take away the depression of earth, drain the depression of metal, and break the depression of water”, proposed in the “Six Yuan Zheng Ji Da Lun” of the Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor are in line with the correspondence between heaven and man, and are the theoretical origin of the “Five Pathogenic Stagnations” in traditional Chinese medicine. Acne vulgaris is a disfiguring skin disease mainly occurring in the face, forehead, chest, and back of the human body, involving hair follicles and sebaceous glands. Clinically, it is centered on “stagnation” and often presents with mixed symptoms of deficiency and excess, cold, and heat, which is closely related to the disharmony of Ying and Wei and the imbalance of qi and blood. Inner Canon of the Yellow Emperor says, “What is within must be reflected without.”