Source: Chinese Pharmacopoeia
Category: Formulas that Regulate Blood
Pattern: Heart Blood Stasis
Key Symptoms: Palpitations, stabbing pain in the anterior region over heart, suffocating sensation in the chest
Secondary Symptoms: Intermittent pain down the left arm, cold limbs, blue lips and nails
Tongue: Dark red with purple spots or purple body and little coating
Pulse: Minute and thready or knotted
Ingredients
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Dan Shen
| 3-15g | |
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Pinyin: Dan Shen
Chinese: 丹參
Pharmaceutical: Radix Salviae miltiorrhizae
Taxonomy: Salvia miltiorrhiza
English: Red Sage Root / Salvia Root / Zi Dan Shen 紫丹參 (Purple Cinnabar Ginseng) / Xue Shen 血參 (Blood Ginseng) |
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Tastes: Bitter, slightly cold
Meridians Entered: Heart and Liver |
Actions & Indications:
- Clears Heat and soothes irritability
Ying Stage Heat with restlessness, irritability, palpitations and insomnia
Heart and Kidney Yin Deficiency
- Cools the Blood and reduces abscesses
Adjunctive to treat sores or early-stage breast abscesses
- Nourishes the Blood and calms the Spirit
Palpitations and insomnia due to Ying and Xue Stage Heat or Heart Blood Deficiency
Agitation due to Gu Parasites / chronic inflammatory disease (Fruehauf, 2015)
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Standard Dosage: 5-15g in decoction.
Cautions: Use with caution for pregnant women. Contraindicated to Li Lu. |
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San Qi
| 2-10g | |
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Pinyin: San Qi / Tian Qi
Chinese: 三七 / 田七
Pharmaceutical: Radix Notoginseng
Taxonomy: Panax notoginseng
English: Pseudoginseng Root |
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Tastes: Sweet, slightly bitter, warm
Meridians Entered: Stomach and Liver |
Actions & Indications:
- Stops bleeding and transforms Blood Stasis
Internal and external bleeding including hematemesis, epistaxis, hematochezia, metrorrhagia, bloody dysentery, menorrhagia, and hematuria, dizziness, pain
- Reduces swelling, alleviates pain and removes extravasated Blood
Traumatic injury with swelling and pain, including falls, fractures, contusions and sprains, stab wounds, pain, dizziness and post-natal Blood retention
- Invigorates the Blood
Chest and abdominal pain and joint pain due to Blood Stasis
Sores, carbuncles and snake and animal bites, conjunctivitis
Cancer
- Relieves the symptoms of Gu Sydnrome while suppressing parasites (Fruehauf, 1998)
Chronic inflammatory disease (Fruehauf, 2015)
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Standard Dosage: 3-10g in decoction. 1-1.5g as powder or pills.
Cautions: Use with cautions for pregnant women. |
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Jiang Xiang
| 3-6g | | |
Pinyin: Jiang Xiang
Chinese: 降香
Pharmaceutical: Lignum Dalbergiae odoriferae
Taxonomy: Dalbergia odorifera
English: Fragrant Rosewood Heart |
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Tastes: Pungent, warm
Meridians Entered: Liver and Spleen |
Actions & Indications:
- Disperses Blood Stasis and stops bleeding
Internal injuries due to trauma, fractures, sprains or contusions
Topically alone or with other herbs to stop bleeding from lacerations
- Invigorates the Blood, promotes the movement of Qi and alleviates pain
Epigastric and abdominal pain due to stagnant Qi in the Spleen and Stomach
Chest pain due to Blood Stasis
- Harmonizes the Middle Jiao and relieves nausea
Nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain due to Dampness Accumulation
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Standard Dosage: 3-6g in decoction.
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Preparation: Ground into powder and formed into pills.
Actions: Invigorates the Blood, breaks up Blood Stasis and stops bleeding
Research Links:
Reference Notes: (click to display)
Most formulas are found in Scheid, Bensky, Ellis & Barolet (2009): Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas & Strategies and Chen & Chen (2015) Chinese Herbal Formulas and Applications. Others are from translations of primary sources. It is recommended that the original material is cross-referenced for mistakes and additional information.
Substitutions have been taken from Ken Lloyd & Prof. Leung (2004): Mayway UK Substitution List or the above publications and are intended as suggestions to help navigate the tight restrictions in the UK quickly. More applicable substitutions may be appropriate in specific situations.
Individual herb information has initially been sourced from TCM Wiki and American Dragon for basic data and then updated manually with my own notes.
These pages are intended to assist clinicians and are not intended for self-diagnosis or treatment for which a qualified professional should be consulted.
