Licorice Heart-Purging Decoction (gan cao xie xin tang)---甘草泻心汤,(Treatise on Cold-Attack)
On the basis of Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction the dosage of licorice is increased from 6 gram to 9 gram. Effects: reinforcing the stomach-qi to relieve stuffiness and stop vomiting. Indications: deficiency of the stomach-qi manifested by thundering borborygmus, diarrhea with undigested food, stuffiness, hardness and fullness of epigastrium, retching, vexation and restlessness, etc.
Ban xia xie xin tang(Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction )---半夏泻心汤
【组成】
半夏(12g)
黄芩(9g)
干姜(9g)
人参(9g)
黄连(3g)
大枣(4枚) 炙
甘草(9g)
[SOURCE]: Treatise on Cold-Attack INGREDIENTS:
Pinellia tuber 9g , Scutellaria root 6g , Dry ginger 6g, Ginseng 6g , Roasted licorice root 6g, Coptis root 3g, Chinese date 4 pcs.
[DIRECTIONS]:Decoct the above herbs in water for oral administration.
[EFFECTS]: Harmonizing the stomach and lowering rebellious qi to relieve stuffiness.
[INDICATIONS]: Disharmony of the stomach-qi manifested by stuffiness and fullness of epigastrium without pain, retching or vomiting, bowel sound with diarrhea, thin, yellow and greasy coating, taut and rapid pulse.
[ANALYSIS OF FORMULA]: This is a representative formula of the therapy to open with pungent flavor and lower with bitter flavor for the syndrome of mixed cold and heat. With pungent flavor to disperse coagulation and bitter flavor to stop vomiting, pinellia tuber is the main herb to act on the stomach and spleen for drying dampness. As the assistant herbs, dry ginger is to warm the middle for dispelling cold; Scutellaria root and coptis root are to purge heat with their bitter flavor and cold nature. They cooperate with the main herb to form the formula of opening with pungent flavor and lowering with bitter flavor. Ginseng and Chinese date act as the adjuvant herbs to invigorate the middle-qi. Licorice root is the dispatcher herb to reinforce the spleen and stomach as well as harmonizing all the components.
In the present clinic, this formula is used in acute gastroenteritis, chronic gastritis ,dyspepsia and infantile toxic dyspepsia with the above-mentioned symptoms.
[ASSOCIATED FORMULAE]:
(1) Ginger Heart-Purging Decoction (sheng jiang xie xin tang),(Treatise on Cold-Attack)
On the basis of Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction the dosage of dry ginger is reduced from 6 gram to 3 gram and fresh ginger 12g is added. Effects : harmonizing the stomach to disperse stuffiness and water accumulation. Indications: the combination of water and heat evils manifested by stuffiness and hardness of epigastrium, eructation with fetid odor, thundering borborygmus,diarrhea, etc.
(3) Coptis Decoction(huang lian tang),(Treatise on Cold-Attack):
Coptis root 6g, Roasted licorice root 6g, dry ginger 5g, cassia twig 5g, ginseng 3g, pinellia tuber 9g, Chinese date 4 pcs.
Effects: equally harmonizing cold and heat to regulate stomach-qi and lower rebellious-qi. Indications: heat in chest and cold in stomach manifested by irritable distress of chest, tendency of vomiting, abdominal pain, or bowel sound with diarrhea, white and slippery coating, taut pulse.
NOTES: All the Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction, Ginger Heart-Purging Decoction, Licorice Heart-Purging Decoction and Coptis Decoction are formulae to harmonize cold and heat by opening with pungent flavor and lowering with bitter flavor. Applying herbs of both cold and hot natures,
Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction is mainly applied to symptoms of epigastric stuffiness, retching, bowel sound with diarrhea;
Ginger Heart-Purging Decoction can harmonize the stomach and disperse water and is mainly applied to the joint attack of water evil and heat evil manifested by retching with fetid odor, thundering borborygmus with diarrhe- a, so adding the fresh ginger to disperse water;
Licorice Heart-Purging Decoction can reinforce the stomach-qi to relieve stuffiness and is mainly applied to severe deficiency of the stomach-qi due to erroneous purgation manifested by vexation and restlessness, serious stuffiness of epigastrium, so increasing the dosage of licorice root for reinforcement;
Coptis Decoction can harmonizes cold and heat equally and is mainly applied to symptoms of irritable feverish sensation in chest, vomiting and abdominal pain, so removing scutellaria root from Pinellia Heart-Purging Decoction and adding cassia twig to disperse the stomach cold.