This product is the tuber of the perennial herbaceous plant Arisaema (Arisaema erubescens (Wall.) Schott), Heterophyllous Arisaema (A. heterophyllum Bl.), or Northeast Arisaema (A. amurense Maxim.) of the Arisaema family. Arisaema is mainly produced in Henan, Hebei, Sichuan, and other places; Heterophyllous Arisaema is mainly produced in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and other places; Northeast Arisaema is mainly produced in Liaoning, Jilin, and other places. It is harvested in autumn and winter, the fibrous roots and outer skin are removed, and it is dried to produce raw Nanxing; when processed with ginger juice and alum, it becomes prepared Nanxing.

bubble_chart Properties and Meridians

Bitter and acrid, warm, toxic. Act on lung, liver and spleen meridians.

bubble_chart Efficacy

Drying dampness and resolving phlegm, dispelling wind and relieving convulsion; externally subduing swelling to relieve pain.

bubble_chart Indications

1. Used for damp phlegm, cold-phlegm pattern. This product has the function of drying dampness and resolving phlegm, similar to Pinellia but with a stronger warm dryness nature, and is more effective in dispelling phlegm. It is used to treat stubborn phlegm obstructing the lungs, cough, asthma, and chest tightness, often combined with Pinellia, Immature Orange Fruit, etc., such as in Phlegm-Guiding Decoction; if it is a phlegm-heat cough, it should be combined with Skullcap Root, Trichosanthis Fruit, and other heat-clearing and phlegm-resolving medicines.
2. Used for wind-phlegm pattern, such as vertigo, apoplexy, epilepsy, facial paralysis, and tetanus. This product specifically travels through the meridians, effectively dispelling wind phlegm and stopping spasms. For wind phlegm vertigo, it is combined with Pinellia, Gastrodia Tuber, etc.; for wind phlegm lingering in the meridians, hemiplegia, numbness of hands and feet, facial paralysis, etc., it is combined with Pinellia, Aconite Mother Root, giant typhonium rhizome, etc., such as in Qingzhou White Pill; for tetanus with opisthotonos and profuse phlegm, it is combined with giant typhonium rhizome, Gastrodia Tuber, Saposhnikovia Root, etc., such as in Jade-like Vitality Powder. Modern clinical use for epilepsy involves combining this product with Pepper Fruit, buffalo horn, borneol, known as Epilepsy Calming Tablets, which have a certain therapeutic effect; it is also used for treating tic disorders, combining with Pinellia, Stiff Silkworm.
3. Used for Yongju swelling and pain, poisonous snake bites, etc. This product has the external function of subduing swelling and dissipating bind to relieve pain. For Yongju swelling and pain, subcutaneous nodules, it can be ground into powder and applied with vinegar; for poisonous snake bites, it can be combined with Realgar for external application.
4. In addition, in recent years, raw Arisaema has been used orally or locally for treating cancer with some effect, especially for cervical cancer.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. Kaibao Bencao: "Mainly treats apoplexy, paralysis, eliminates phlegm, lowers qi, breaks hard accumulations, reduces abscesses and swelling, benefits the chest and diaphragm, disperses blood, and induces early abortion."
2. Bencao Gangmu: "Treats fright epilepsy, facial distortion, pharyngitis, mouth and tongue sores, subcutaneous nodes, and ununited skull (hydrocephalus)."
3. Benjing Fengyuan: "Nanxing and Pinellia are both phlegm-resolving medicines. However, Nanxing specifically targets the meridians and collaterals, hence it is used as a guide for apoplexy and paralysis; Pinellia specifically targets the intestines and stomach, hence it is used as a guide for vomiting and diarrhea."

bubble_chart Usage and Dosage

Decoct and take 3-10g, often processed for use. Apply an appropriate amount externally.

bubble_chart Cautions and Contraindications

Contraindicated for dry phlegm due to yin deficiency and for pregnant women.

bubble_chart Modern Pharmacology

This product mainly contains triterpenoid saponins, benzoic acid, amino acids, D-mannitol, etc.

• In recent years, diketopiperazine alkaloids have been isolated, which are effective components for anti-arrhythmia.
• The decoction has the effects of dispelling phlegm, anti-convulsion, sedation, and analgesia;
• The aqueous extract has a significant inhibitory effect on experimental tumors in mice (fleshy tumor S180, liver cancer squamous epithelial type uterus cervical cancer transplanted in mice);
• Diketopiperazine alkaloids can counteract experimental arrhythmia induced by Aconite Mother Root alkaloids.

bubble_chart Supplementary Medicinals

Bile Arisaema: A processed product made by mixing Arisaema with ox gall. Medicinal properties: bitter, slightly pungent, cool; acts on the liver and gallbladder meridians. Functions: clearing heat and resolving phlegm, calming wind and relieving convulsions. Indications: apoplexy, epilepsy, infantile convulsions, head wind vertigo, phlegm-fire wheezing and cough, etc. Dosage: 1.5-6g, decocted for oral administration.