Cyathula, Chuan Niu Xi 川牛膝 Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi (TCM)

Cyathula officinalis
Photo by 北極企鵝觀賞團 (Wikimedia)

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Botanical name:

Cyathula officinalis

Parts used:

Root

Temperature & Taste:

Neutral. Sweet, Bitter

Classification:

k. Medicines that Move the Blood

Uses:

1. Moves the Blood, Clears Stasis:
-Amenorrhea, Dysmenorrhea from Blood stasis
-also to promote Labor
-Pain from Trauma

2. Clears Wind-Damp:
-Lower Back pain
-Arthritic and Rheumatic complaints
-Spasms, Weakness and Atrophy of the lower limbs

3. Clears Damp, Promotes Urine:
-painful, dribbling Urine

Dose:

Decoction: 3–9 grams
Powder: 1–3 grams; taken with wine to move the Blood

Substitute:

Achyranthes Niu Xi

Main Combinations:

1. Dysmenorrhea, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Dang Gui and Safflower (Hong Hua)
2. To promote Labor:
i. Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Dang Gui, Ligusticum Chuan Xiong
ii. Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Cinnamon and Saffron
3. Muscle and Joint Pain from Blood stasis, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Myrrh (Mo Yao), Frankincense (Ru Xiang) and Safflower (Hong Hua)
4. Weakness and pain of the lower Back, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Eucommia Du Zhong, Rehmannia Shu Di Huang
5. Pain, swelling and redness of the joints in the lower limbs due to Damp-Heat, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Phellodendron Huang Bai, Atractylodes Cang Zhu, Job’s Tears (Yi Yi Ren)
6. Wind-Damp joint pain:
i. Lower body joint pain from Wind-Damp, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Chaenomelas Mu Gua, Stephania Han Fang Ji, Dioscorea hypoglauca Bi Xie
ii. Cold-Damp Rheumatism, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Morinda Ba Ji Tian, Aconitum Fu Zi, Acanthopanax Wu Jia Pi, Dendrobium Shi Hu, Licorice, Poria Fu Ling, Saposhnikovia Fang Feng. (as in Ba Ji Tang from Wonderful Well-Tried Prescriptions)
iii. Rheumatism, Paralysis, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Acanthopanax Wu Jia Pi, Dang Gui, Burnet root (Di Yu) soaked in wine to make a medicinal alcohol (as in Wu Jia Pi Jiu from Ben Cao Gang Mu [Compendium of Materia Medica]).
iv. Lower Back and Knee Pain, or chronic Rheumatism, Cyathula Chuan Niu Xi with Angelica Du Huo, Dang Gui, Atractylodes Bai Zhu, Astragalus Huang Qi (as in Du Huo Tang). This has also been used for Infantile Paralysis

Major Formulas:

Shu Jing Huo Xue Tang
Zuo Gui Wan
Du Huo Tang
Wu Jia Pi Jiu

Cautions:

1. Not used during pregnancy
2. Not used in cases with excessive menstruation

Main Preparations used: