This product is the tuber of the perennial herb Corydalis Tuber (Corydalis yanhusuo W. T. Wang) from the poppy family. It is mainly produced in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Hubei, Hunan, and other regions. It is harvested when the stems and leaves wither in early summer, the fibrous roots are removed, and it is boiled in boiling water until there is no white core left, then taken out and dried in the sun. It is used in thick slices or crushed, either raw or vinegar-fried.

bubble_chart Properties and Meridians

Acrid and bitter, warm. act on liver, spleen and heart channels.

bubble_chart Efficacy

Promote blood circulation, move qi, relieve pain.

bubble_chart Indications

Mainly used for qi and blood stasis stagnation pain syndromes. This product is pungent and dispersing, warm and unblocking, "can move blood and middle qi stagnation, qi and blood stagnation, thus specifically treating pain throughout the body." Its pain-relieving effect is excellent, and it can be applied in combination with other medicinals for any type of pain syndrome.

• For chest impediment, it is combined with Trichosanthis Fruit, Longstamen Onion Bulb, or Salvia, Sichuan Lovage Rhizome, etc.;
• for stomachache, it is combined with White Atractylodes Rhizome, Immature Orange Fruit, Peony Root, etc.; if it is cold in nature, it is combined with Cinnamon Twig or Lesser Galangal Rhizome; if it is hot in nature, it is combined with Gardenia, Chinaberry Fruit; if it is qi stagnation, it is combined with Cyperus, Aucklandia Root; if it is blood stasis, it is combined with Salvia, Trogopterus Dung.
• For liver depression qi stagnation hypochondriac region distending pain, it is combined with Bupleurum, Curcuma Root, etc.;
• for women's dysmenorrhea, postpartum stasis abdominal pain, it is combined with Chinese Angelica, Carthamus, Cyperus, etc.;
• for cold abdominal colic abdominal pain, it is combined with Fennel, Evodia Fruit, etc.;
• for traumatic injury, it is combined with frankincense, myrrh;
• for wind-dampness arthralgia, it is combined with Gentian, Cinnamon Twig, etc.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. Leigong Paozhi Lun: "Treats heart pain that makes one feel like dying."
2. Kaibao Bencao: "Mainly breaks blood stasis, treats various postpartum diseases caused by blood issues. Women's menstrual irregularities, abdominal masses, menorrhagia, postpartum blood dizziness, sudden blood rushing upwards, blood loss due to injury, or taken with wine or boiled."
3. Bencao Gangmu: "Corydalis Tuber can move blood and relieve qi stagnation, and qi stagnation in blood, thus specifically treating pain throughout the body."

bubble_chart Usage and Dosage

Decoct and take 3-10g; take 1.5-3g as powder. Often used after vinegar processing. Vinegar processing can significantly increase the solubility of its active components, thereby enhancing its analgesic effect.

bubble_chart Modern Pharmacology

This product's tubers contain various alkaloids such as dextrorotatory corydaline (Corydalis Tuber A), proto-opium alkaloid (Corydalis Tuber C), racemic tetrahydropalmatine (Corydalis Tuber B), dextrorotatory glaucine, Coptis Rhizome alkaloid, dehydrocorydaline, and Corydalis Tuber Chou, among others.

• It has analgesic effects, with a potency one-tenth that of opium. Alkaloids B and Chou have stronger effects, followed by A, and C also exhibits significant analgesic properties.
• Alkaloid B has notable sedative, hypnotic, and tranquilizing effects, along with grade I central antiemetic and body temperature-lowering effects.
• The alcohol extract, particularly dehydro-Corydalis Tuber A, significantly dilates coronary vessels in animals, increases coronary blood flow, and is effective against certain experimental arrhythmias. The water-soluble portion of the total alkaloids is effective against ventricular premature beats, with effects similar to quinidine.
• Dehydrocorydaline can protect against experimental ulcers in rats, reducing gastric juice secretion, gastric acid, and pepsin levels.

bubble_chart Modern Application

In modern clinical practice, it has shown good efficacy in treating various types of visceral spasmodic or non-spasmodic pain; it is also used for treating neuralgia in leprosy, and a 0.2% Corydalis Tuber alkaloid injection has been employed for local anesthesia during surgeries.