Coughing with Blood Treating Decoction

Coughing with Blood Treating Decoction

Indigo Naturalis (Qing Dai ground with water) 6g, Trichosanthis Semen (Gua Lou Ren fat removed) 9g, Dried Sea Hare Ovary (Hai Fen) 9g, Gardeniae Fructus (Jia Zhi Zi) 9g, Chebulae Fructus (He Zi) 6g

Grind these medicinals into a fine powder, and make pills using honey and ginger juice. Dissolve the pill in the mouth. (Modern use: Grind these medicinals into fine powder, take 9g a dosage. It can also be used as decoction, adjust the dosage according to the proportion of the origin formula.)

Clears liver heat and calms the lung, cools blood and stanches bleeding.

Syndrome of hemoptysis due to liver fire invading the lung marked by cough, thick bloodstained sputum, difficulty in spitting, vexation, irascibility, chest pain, dry throat, bitter taste in the mouth, flushed complexion, and constipation. The tongue body is red and the coating is yellow, and the pulse is wiry and rapid.

This pattern is caused by liver fire invading the lung and damaging the blood vessels. Of all the zang-fu organs, the lung is the most delicate and pure. If burned by the liver fire, the lung fluid becomes sputum. If it fails to purify and descend, the sputum will become thick and hard to expectorate. When liver fire burns the lung and damages the lung’s collaterals, the blood will overflow upward and there will be bloodstained sputum. Due to the flaming of liver fire, there is vexation, irascibility, chest pain, dry throat, bitter taste in the mouth, flushed complexion, and constipation. A red tongue body and a yellow coating, and a wiry, rapid pulse are signs of flaming fire. The location of the disease is in the lung, but the root of the disease is in the liver. According to the therapeutic principle, clear the liver heat and drain fire to treat the root. When the fire is cleared and qi descended, the lung can work normally.

1. Essential pattern differentiation Ke Xue Fang is usually indicated for patterns of hemoptysis caused by liver fire invading the lung. This clinical pattern is marked by blood-stained sputum, chest pain, red tongue and yellow coating, wiry, rapid pulse. 2. Modern applications This formula may be used in the following biomedically defined disorders when the patient shows signs of liver fire invading the lung: hemoptysis of bronchiectasis or tuberculosis. 3. Cautions and contraindications This formula is cold, cool, descending, and drastic in nature. It is not suitable for patterns of lung-kidney yin deficiency or diarrhea due to spleen deficiency.