Artemisia capillaris 18 gm, Gardenia 15 gm (split), Rhubarb 6 gm (peeled)

bubble_chart Preparation and Dosage

Take the above 3 ingredients, boil Yinchen with 1.2 liters of water until reduced to 600 ml, then decoct to 300 ml, and remove the dregs.

bubble_chart Efficacy

Clearing heat and draining dampness to relieve jaundice.

bubble_chart Indications

Dampness-heat jaundice, characterized by a bright yellow discoloration of the entire body and face resembling the color of an orange, slight abdominal fullness, thirst, difficulty in urination, a yellow and greasy tongue coating, and a deep, firm or slippery and rapid pulse.

bubble_chart Formula Principles

In the formula, Virgate Wormwood serves as the monarch herb for clearing heat and draining dampness, as well as soothing the liver and gallbladder. Gardenia, as the minister herb, clears and drains damp-heat from the triple energizer and also helps to reduce jaundice. Rhubarb Rhizoma, as the assistant herb, promotes bowel movement and guides heat downward. The combination of these three herbs facilitates the excretion of damp-heat pathogens through both urine and stool, thereby eliminating dampness and heat, which naturally resolves jaundice. Regarding its preventive and therapeutic effects on toxic liver injury, as reported in "Shanxi Medical Journal" 1975(3):79-83, rats with carbon tetrachloride-induced liver injury showed varying degrees of alleviation in liver cell swelling, ballooning degeneration, fatty changes, and necrosis after treatment with Virgate Wormwood decoction. The glycogen and ribonucleic acid content accumulated in liver cells was restored or nearly normalized, and serum alanine aminotransferase activity significantly decreased. This provides morphological and functional evidence for the jaundice-reducing effect of Virgate Wormwood decoction and its efficacy in treating hepatitis.