Coptis 6 gm, Gardenia (stir-fried) 6 gm, Tangerine Peel 4.5 gm, Poria 4.5 gm, Pinellia 3 gm (soaked in ginger decoction seven times), Alpinia Katsumadai Seed (crushed) 2 gm, Licorice (roasted) 2 gm.

bubble_chart Preparation and Dosage

Use 400 ml of water, add 3 slices of ginger, and decoct until reduced to 320 ml. Take before meals.

bubble_chart Indications

Intense internal heat causing heart pain and epigastric pain.

bubble_chart Documentation

Li, male, 28 years old, first visited on April 8, 1984. He complained of burning pain in the epigastric region for two months, which had not healed. The pain radiated to the shoulders and back, worsened in the evening, and was accompanied by reduced appetite, bitter taste in the mouth, acid reflux, occasional belching, yellow and painful urination, thin yellow tongue coating, and a wiry and rapid pulse. Despite multiple treatments, the condition worsened. An X-ray barium meal examination diagnosed acute gastritis. The syndrome was identified as cold stagnation transforming into heat, with qi stagnation and phlegm coagulation. The treatment aimed to purge fire, eliminate phlegm, regulate qi, and relieve depression. The prescribed formula was a modified Middle-Clearing Decoction: Pinellia 10g, Dried Tangerine Peel 10g, White Poria 10g, Alpinia Seed 6g, Gardenia 12g, Coptis Rhizome 10g, Bupleurum 10g, Aucklandia Root 6g, Liquorice Root 5g, and Fresh Ginger Rhizome 5g. After one dose, the pain significantly reduced. After five more doses, the condition was cured. A one-year follow-up showed no recurrence. [Hunan Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 195, 11(2): 21-22]