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Yellow Earth Decoction huang tu tang

[SOURCE]: Synopsis of the Gold Chamber

[INGREDIENTS]: Licorice root 9g,  Dried rehmannia root 9g,  Bighead atractylodes rhizome 9g,  Prepared aconite root 9g,  Donkey-hide gelatin 9g,  Scutellaria root 9g,  Loess lining of a hay-burning stove 30g

[DIRECTIONS] ： Loess lining of a hay-burning stove is decocted in water to get its decoction, and then decoct the other herbs in the solution for oral administra­tion.

[EFFECTS]: Warming yang, invigorating the spleen, nourishing the blood and arresting bleeding.

[INDICATIONS]: Hemorrhage due to deficiency of spleen-yang marked by hematochezia, or hematemesis, epistaxis, metrorrhagia and metrostaxis with dark-red color, cold limbs, sallow complexion, pale tongue with white coating, deep, thready and feeble pulse.

[ANALYSIS OF FORMULA]: It is a common formula for treatment of hemor­rhage due to weakness of yang-qi and failure of the spleen to command the blood. Loess lining of a hay-burning stove, as the principal herb in the formula, Warms the middle and arrests bleeding with astringency. Acting as assistant herbs, big- head atractylodes rhizome and prepared aconite root strengthens the spleen to benefit qi and warms yang to command the blood. Dried rehmania root and don­key-hide gelatin nourish yin, replenish the blood and arrest bleeding. Scutellaria root, being bitter in flavor and cold in property, is used to restrict warm and dry nature of bighead atractylodes rhizome. Prepared aconite root is to prevent the blood form consuming and bleeding. They are used together to get rid of their greasy tonic nature. Licorice root, as a dispatcher herb, coordinates the actions of all other ingredients in the formula and harmonizes the middle.

This formula is often used for syndrome of failure of the spleen to command the blood involved in chronic hemorrhage of gastrointestinal tract and chronic dys- functinal uterine bleeding.

Yellow Earth Decoction and Back to the Spleen Decoction both have the ac­tion of arresting bleeding, and are both used for bleeding due to failure of the spleen to command the blood. However, the former warms spleen-yang to stop bleeding, it is used for bleeding due to deficiency of spleen-yang. The latter invig­orates the spleen-qi to stop bleeding, and so is used for bleeding due to failure of the qi to command blood.