【Chinese Name】 |
涼膈散
|
【Phonetic】 |
Liang Ge San
|
【English Name】 |
Diaphragm-Cooling Powder |
【Classification】 |
Heat-clearing formulas |
【Source】 |
《Formulas from the Imperial Pharmacy》Tai Ping Hui Min He Ji Ju Fang《太平惠民和劑局方》 |
【Combination】 |
Rhei Radix et Rhizoma (Da Huang) 20 liang (600g), Natrii Sulfas (Po Xiao) 20 liang (600g), Glycyrrhizae Radix et Rhizoma Praeparata cum Melle (Zhi Gan Cao) 20 liang (600g), Gardeniae Fructus (Zhi Zi) 10 liang (300g), Menthae Haplocalycis Herba (Bo He) 10 liang (300g), Scutellariae Radix (Huang Qin) 10 liang (300g), Forsythiae Fructus (Lian Qiao) 2.5 jin (1250g) |
【Method】 |
Grind the medicinals into a crude powder. One dose is 6g to 12g of the powder. Take each dose with zhu ye 3g and a little honey as a draft. The formula may also be prepared as a decoction for oral ingestion by adjusting the medicinal quantities based on the original ratios. |
【Action】 |
Drains fire, promotes defecation, clears heat from the upper, and discharges heat through the purgative method. |
【Indication】 |
This formula is indicated for the heat that has been generated from the constraint of pathogens in the upper jiao and middle jiao. The symptoms are vexing heat in the chest and diaphragm, red complexion, parched lips, vexation and agitation, thirst, mouth and tongue sores, restless sleep, delirium, pharyngeal pain, spitting of blood, nosebleed, constipation, dark urine, and incomplete defecation. The tongue is red with a yellow coating, and the pulse is slippery and rapid. |
【Pathogenesis】 |
This is a pattern of zang-fu organ heat within the chest and diaphragm, which mainly manifests in the upper jiao and middle jiao. The heat burns in the chest and diaphragm to cause a vexing heat. The heat consumes fluids, which causes thirst, dry throat, and parched lips. Fire flames upward, according to nature, producing a red complexion, red eyes, mouth and tongue sores, pharyngeal pain, spitting of blood, and nosebleed. The heat harasses the heart spirit, causing vexation and agitation, unquiet sleep, or delirium. Dryness-heat binds internally, causing constipation and dark urine. The red tongue with yellow coating, as well as the slippery and rapid pulse, reflects the intense interior heat. The characteristic feature of this pattern’s pathogenesis is the accumulation of zang-fu heat, which rests in the chest and diaphragm, damages the heart and stomach, transforms into fire, and then flames upward. |
【Application】 |
1. Essential pattern differentiation Liang Ge San is a commonly used formula applicable for the accumulated heat of zang-fu organs in the chest and diaphragm. This clinical pattern is marked by vexing heat in the chest and diaphragm, red complexion and parched lips, thirst, vexation, and agitation, red tongue with a yellow coating, and a rapid or slippery pulse. 2. Modern applications This formula may be used in the following biomedically defined disorders when the patient shows signs of accumulated heat in the upper jiao and middle jiao: pharyngitis, stomatitis, acute tonsillitis, infection of biliary tract, cholelithiasis, acute icteric hepatitis, and epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis. 3. Cautions and contraindications Stop taking this formula once constipation is relieved. Otherwise, the spleen and stomach may be damaged. This formula should be taken with caution in pregnant or weak patients. |
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