What are the functions and effects of Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiang Tang?

Recently, I have heard a lot about Bupleurum Cassia Twig and Dry Ginger Decoction being used to treat liver disease. So, can Bupleurum Cassia Twig and Dry Ginger Decoction really treat it? What are its actual effects?

Bupleurum, Cinnamon Twig and Dry Ginger Soup

【Drug composition】

1/2 jin of Bupleurum Root 3 liang of Cinnamon Twig (peeled) 2 liang of Dry Ginger 4 liang of Trichosanthes Root 3 liang of Scutellaria Baicalensis 2 liang of Oyster (boiled) 2 liang of Licorice (roasted)

【Decoction method】

Take the above seven ingredients, add 1 dou 2 liters of water, boil until 6 liters are left, remove the residue, boil again until 3 liters are left, take 1 liter warm, 3 times a day. You may feel a little nauseous at first, but if you take it again, you will sweat and recover.

【Indications】

(1) Alternating chills and fever, fullness and slight congestion in the chest and abdomen, restlessness, thirst without nausea, but sweating on the head, difficulty urinating, loose and thin stools, stringy and slow pulse, and pale tongue with a white coating.

(2) "Jin Kui" is used to treat malaria. If the patient is mostly cold with a slight fever, or just cold without fever, taking one dose will work like a miracle.

【original】

Article 147: "After five or six days of typhoid fever, the patient has been sweating and has been given a purgative. He still feels fullness and slight congestion in the chest and abdomen, difficulty urinating, thirst without vomiting, but sweating on the head, alternating chills and fever, and irritability. This means that the disease has not been cured. Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiang Decoction is the main treatment."

【Fang Yi】

This recipe is Xiao Chaihu Tang minus Pinellia, Ginseng, Fresh Ginger, and Jujube, and is added with Cinnamon Twig, Dry Ginger, Oyster, and Trichosanthes Root. Bupleurum is combined with Scutellaria to resolve the evil of Shaoyang; Cinnamon Twig, Dry Ginger, and Roasted Licorice can nourish the spleen and dispel cold, warm and promote Yang Qi; Trichosanthes Root can promote fluid and quench thirst, and is combined with Oyster to soften and unblock knots. Because of the indigestion, Pinellia is removed; because of the obstruction of Qi transformation, Ginseng and Jujube are removed to promote Qi transformation, and Cinnamon Twig and Dry Ginger are added to promote Qi transformation. This recipe can resolve the evil of Shaoyang, warm and promote Yang transformation, and promote Qi transformation.

【Selection】

"Yi Zong Jin Jian" states: "Since the exterior and interior of Shaoyang have not been resolved, a combination of Bupleurum and Cinnamon Twig is used to treat it, which is a variation of Xiao Chaihu Tang. Ginseng is removed because its vital energy is not deficient; Pinellia is reduced because it does not cause nausea and may contribute to dryness. Trichosanthes root is added because it can quench thirst and produce body fluids; Bupleurum is doubled and Cinnamon Twig is added to treat the exterior of Shaoyang; Oyster is added to soften the knot of Shaoyang. Dried ginger is used with Cinnamon Twig to disperse the intermittent cold; Scutellaria is used with Bupleurum to eliminate the intermittent heat and to control the dry ginger from causing irritation. The cold and warm properties of the various medicines are different, so licorice is necessary to balance them. If you feel a little irritated at first, the effect of the medicine is not enough. If you sweat after taking it again, you will be cured. This means that this symptom is not unresolved due to sweating."

【Notes】

The symptoms of Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiang Tang can be a sequel to Taiyang disease. For example, if you have had typhoid fever for five or six days, and you have been sweating but it has not healed, and you use purgatives, the evil will be trapped in Shaoyang, and the qi will be stagnant and uncomfortable, so the chest and ribs will be full and slightly knotted; the gallbladder fire will rise and burn the body fluid, so you will feel upset and thirsty; the heat evil cannot be vented and steams up, so only the head will sweat; the positive and negative forces are in conflict, so there will be alternating cold and heat; it has nothing to do with the stomach, so there will be no vomiting; the triple burner qi is blocked, so urination is not smooth; the spleen is damaged and cold, so there will be fullness in the abdomen or loose stools. This symptom is gallbladder heat and spleen cold, so you should clear the heat of Shaoyang and warm the cold of Taiyin, and Chaihu Guizhi Ganjiang Tang is appropriate.

This recipe is a modified version of Xiao Chaihu Tang. Xiao Chaihu Tang has the following recipe: "If the patient has chest discomfort but no nausea, remove Pinellia and Ginseng and add one piece of Trichosanthes fruit; if the patient is thirsty, remove Pinellia and add Ginseng to make 4.5 liang, and Trichosanthes root 4 liang." Now, since the patient has chest discomfort and thirst but no nausea, ginseng and Pinellia are removed and Trichosanthes root is added to nourish body fluid and overcome heat. "If the patient has hardness and lumps in the lower abdomen, remove jujube and add oyster." Now, if the patient has fullness and slight lumps in the lower abdomen, it is a sign of hardness and lumps, so remove jujube and add oyster. "If the patient has palpitations in the lower abdomen and difficulty urinating, remove Scutellaria and add Poria." Now, although the patient has difficulty urinating, he does not have palpitations in the lower abdomen but suffers from discomfort, which indicates that the patient has less body fluid and heat, not water retention in the body, so Scutellaria is still retained to clear heat. Because there is no water evil, Poria cocos is not added. Fresh ginger is replaced with dried ginger, and cinnamon twig is added, taking its pungent and warming effect of dispersing stagnation, warming the middle and dispersing cold to promote the flow of qi and body fluid, so slight discomfort may be seen when taking the medicine for the first time. After taking it again, the exterior and interior are in harmony, the yang qi is unblocked, and the body fluid flows, so "sweating and defecation are cured."

【Fang Ge】

Bupleurum, cinnamon and ginger cause back pain, loose stools and poor urination;

When Yang evil turns to Yin Qi and weakens, use Bupleurum, Scutellaria, Ginger, Cinnamon, and Grass Powder.

Changsha dialect summary:

Eight firewood, two grass, dried ginger, three magnolias and four cinnamon sticks are suitable.

If you don't feel thirsty, irritable, or sweaty, it means you have a Shaoyang Shu disease and you need to be careful.