Muskmelon Pedicel Powder gua di san
【SOURCE】:Treatise on Clod-Attack
【INGREDIENTS】: Muskmelon pedicel 1g, Red bean 1g
【DIRECTIONS】:Grind the above herbs into fine powder. Take it with prepared soybean 9g decoction. If vomiting is not induced after taking it, applying clean feather to stimulate the throat for vomiting.
【EFFECT】:Pouring out phlegm and retained food.
【INDICATIONS】: stagnation of phlegm and retained food in the chest and epigastrium manifested by stuffiness and hardness of chest, severe vexation, shortness of breath with gas pushing up to the chest, slight floating pulse on the “cun” portion.
【ANALYSIS OF FORMULA】: This is a key formula for emetic therapy. Being bitter flavor, muskmelon pedicel acts as the main herb to pour out phlegm and retained food. Because musknelon pedicel possesses toxicity and easily injures the stomach-qi, red bean and prepared soybean are used together to protect the stomach-qi. Meanwhile, prepared soybean can dispel evil from the chest as well as helping muskmelon pedicel pour out evils. They together act as the adjuvant and dispatcher herbs.
If the retained food stays in the intestines rather than epigastrium, or phlegm is not located in the chest, or patient is deficient, this formula is prohibited.
【ASSOCIATED FORMULA】:
Three Sages Powder (san sheng san)---三圣散,(Confucian Duties to Their Parents)
Ledebouriella root 9g, muskmelon pedicel 9g, veratrum 0.3〜3g
Grind the above herbs into coarse granules and decoct them in water for oral administration. Take it slowly till vomiting is induced. Or give the decoction by nosal feeding.
Effect : pouring out wind-phlegm.
Indications: closure syndrome of apoplexia manifested by aphasia, suffocative vexation, wry mouth and eyes, or unconsciousness, lockjaw, floating, slippery and forceful pulse. It could also be applied to epilepsy due to turbid phlegm obstructing in the chest or to syndrome due to food poisoning at the epigastrium.
NOTES:The emetic effect of Three Sages Powder is stronger than that of Muskmelon Pedicel Powder. The former is special for pouring out wind-phlegm and mainly applied to apoplexia and epilepsy due to phlegm retention; while the latter is good at pouring out phlegm and retained food and mainly applied to stuffiness and hardness of the chest, shortness of breath with gas pushing up to the chest due to stagnation of phlegm and retained food in the chest.