A Materia Medica for Chinese Medicine: plants, minerals and animal products

1016 Pages·2009·39.93 MB·English

First edition published in English © 2009, Elsevier Limited. All rights reserved.
First and second edition published in German under the title Leitfaden Chinesische
Phytotherapie
First edition 2001, © Elsevier GmbH, Urban & Fischer, Munich
Second edition 2007
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Notice
Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and
experience broaden our knowledge, changes in practice, treatment and herbal therapy
may become necessary or appropriate. Readers are advised to check the most current
information available and to verify the recommended dose or formula, the method and
duration of administration, and contraindications. It is the responsibility of the practi-
tioner, relying on their own experience and knowledge of the patient, to make diagnoses,
to determine dosages and the best treatment for each individual patient, and to take all
appropriate safety precautions. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor
the authors assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property
arising out of or related to any use of the material contained in this book.
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Preface
Phytotherapy or herbal medicine is the most important therapy in Chinese medicine
and is of increasing importance in the West. We therefore thought it was time to publish
a handy, practical and concise book for physicians, students, therapists and interested
laypersons. The presentation of the Chinese materia medica should be practice-oriented,
concise and compact but nevertheless complete and cover the most important and com-
monly used herbs.
Based on our 20-year experience in prescribing Chinese herbs, as well as our even
longer teaching experiences, we have found that the pivotal point of the herbal paradigm
is the clinical description of its actions. We have therefore carefully described these
actions and placed them at the centre of each monograph. Based on our own experiences
and in order to increase practical use in a clinical situation, we have added the following
statements for each monograph:
• a three-staged clinical assessment of each paradigm statement
• the direction of action of the herb
• areas with special action, which we qualify as the site of action.
The lavish pictures of the plants, minerals and animal substances as well as the prepared
drugs should illustrate the herbs and visually bring the herbs closer to their
prescribers.
The herbs were selected according to clinical relevance; the issue of protection of
endangered species has been taken into account and thus tortoise shell, tiger bones
or bear gall bladders are not described. Toxic herbs such as Aristolochiae radix or
Hocquartiae caulis, which carry severe risks, have not been included.
The designation of the herbs remains a problem; despite their worldwide use, there
is no internationally uniform nomenclature and no regulating body regarding their
labelling. There are many names for the same medicinal product. The main reason for
this is that one medicinal product may originate from one of several different plants or
that a particular plant may be known by several alternative names. An example of this
is the drug fang feng, which is made from Ledebouriella divaricata, which is also known
as Saposhnikoviae divaricata. When the therapist prescribes Ledebouriella radix, the
pharmacist substitutes Saposhnikoviae radix because the herbal wholesaler alternately
provides Ledebouriella radix or Saposhnikoviae radix. The Chinese supplier, and ulti-
mately the farmer, has frequently sent one or the other. The reality of the marketplace
has led us, in several cases, to include alternative names for one herb and connect these
with the Latin seu meaning ‘or’; the clinical descriptions in the monographs for these
herbs are identical.
This book would not have been possible without the important pioneer work of our
teacher Prof. Manfred Porkert, who by preparing the way provided us with the necessary
background. This project would not have been completed without the help of our
Chinese friends, most notably Prof. Fan Jiayong of the Chengdu TCM University. We
are also indebted to many colleagues and co-workers too numerous to name; here we
wish to thank Agnes Fatrai for preparing the Chinese characters, and to Conny Stein and
Barbara Donaubauer for their beautiful photographs. Our very special thanks go to our
editor Christl Kiener.
Munich and Zurich, November 2005 Carl-Hermann Hempen
Toni Fischer
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vii
Translator’s note
The issue of capitalization and italicization of Chinese names has been the source of
discussion in the Chinese medical publishing world for many years. Traditionally, all
the ‘treasures’ (such as Essence and Blood), the names of the organs (or Organs) and
the pathogenic influences (Wind, Cold) have been capitalized and/or put in italics. This
problem is of course, irrelevant in German, where all proper names are automatically
capitalized.
In this English translation of the text, the names of the Chinese organs such as the
Heart and Kidney have been capitalized in order to distinguish them from the western
anatomical–physiological organs of the heart and kidney. The Chinese ‘treasures’ such
as essence and blood, and the pathogenic influences wind, cold, etc. have not been
capitalized, making the text more elegant and easier to read.
Drs Hempen and Fischer have chosen to present the plants using their full scientific
names (Pinelliae rhizoma) and not their pharmacological ones (i.e. Pinellia Rhizoma
or Rhizoma Pinelliae) in order to facilitate correct identification.
VW 2008
Disclaimer
Readers should be aware of the legal status of certain material medica included in this
book. Although they are available in China, a few herbs are subject to export restrictions
and others are considered too toxic for use in some western countries. Other herbs
cannot be sold in unlicensed medical preparations as herbs. In addition, some material
medica may be included in the Appendix of the Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) (http://www.cites.org/eng/app/
appendices.shtml).
The situation regarding restrictions and bans tends to change over time and from
country to country. Readers should consult the appropriate authorities in their own
countries for the latest developments. Inclusion of material medica in this book does
not imply that their use is permitted in all countries and all circumstances.
To the extent permissible under applicable laws, no responsibility is assumed by the
Publisher, its distributors or licensees for any injury and/or damage to persons or prop-
erty as a result of any alleged libellous statements, infringement of intellectual property
or privacy rights, or products liability, whether resulting from negligence, herbal dosage
or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any ideas, instructions, procedures, prod-
ucts or methods contained in the material herein.
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viii
General principles of Chinese pharmacology
Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
Paradigms of the herbs   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
Temperature   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   2
Taste  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   3
Organ relationship   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   4
Direction of action   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   5
Location   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
Actions/Indications   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   7
Indications  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Physiological and pharmacological effects  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Toxicity   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Dosage   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Cooking times  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Combinations   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Compatibility   . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10
Contraindications  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  11
Pregnancy  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  11
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