This product is a processed product of natural arsenic-containing minerals such as arsenic bloom, arsenopyrite, or realgar, containing arsenic trioxide (As₂O₃), also known as arsenic. It is mainly produced in Jiangxi, Hunan, Guangdong, Guizhou, and other places. The commercial products are divided into red arsenic and white arsenic, with red arsenic being the primary form used in medicine. The sublimated refined product of arsenic is a white powder, still composed of arsenic trioxide, but with even more potent toxicity.

bubble_chart Properties and Meridians

Acrid, extremely hot. extremely toxic. Act on lung and liver meridians.

bubble_chart Efficacy

External use for eroding sores and removing decay; internal use for resolving phlegm and relieving asthma.

bubble_chart Indications

1. Used for ringworm sores, scrofula, ulcerative gingivitis, hemorrhoids, and ulcers with non-detaching necrotic flesh. This product has the effects of attacking toxins, killing worms, eroding sores, and removing decay when applied externally. For treating scabies and malignant sores, mix a small amount of arsenic into a fine powder and apply it to the affected area with rice water; for scrofula, make the product into a powder, combine it with thick ink to form pills, prick the affected area with a needle, and apply the pill until the erosion is complete; for ulcerative gingivitis, use a Chinese Date with the pit removed, wrap it around arsenic, char it, grind it into powder, and apply it externally to the affected area; for hemorrhoids, mix it with Alum, borax, Realgar, etc., to make external medicines, such as Kuzhi Powder.
2. Used for cold-phlegm asthma. This product is pungent and very hot, and when taken internally, it can dispel cold, expel phlegm, and relieve asthma. It can be used for cold-phlegm asthma that has not been cured for a long time. It is often taken with Fermented Soybean in pill form, such as Zijingdan.
3. In addition, this product also has the effect of preventing malaria attacks, but it is rarely used clinically nowadays.

bubble_chart Documentation

1. 《Materia Medica Compendium》: "Eliminates nasal asthma, accumulated dysentery, rotten flesh, erodes stasis and decay, scrofula." Also, "erodes Yongju decaying flesh, dries hemorrhoids, kills worms."

bubble_chart Usage and Dosage

For external use, apply an appropriate amount. Grind into powder and sprinkle or mix into plaster for application. For oral use in pills or powders, take 0.002～0.004g each time.

bubble_chart Cautions and Contraindications

This product is highly toxic. It should be taken orally with caution, and the dosage and usage must be carefully controlled. It should not be used continuously and must not be taken as a wine preparation. It is contraindicated for pregnant women. External use should also be limited to avoid local absorption and poisoning.

bubble_chart Processing and Storage

All arsenic must be placed in a sand pot, sealed tightly with mud, heated until red-hot in a furnace fire, then taken out and allowed to cool. Alternatively, it can be boiled with mung beans to reduce its toxicity. It should be ground into a fine powder for use.

bubble_chart Modern Pharmacology

This product mainly contains arsenic trioxide (As₂O₃). Arsenic trioxide and arsenic agents have a protoplasmic poison-like effect, can paralyze capillaries, inhibit the activity of enzymes, cause fatty degeneration of the liver, central necrosis of liver lobules, congestion of the heart, liver, kidneys, and intestines, necrosis of epithelial cells, rice-water-like diarrhea, proteinuria, hematuria, vertigo, headache, cyanosis, syncope, lethargy, convulsions, paralysis, and even death. It is generally believed that arsenic binds to sulfhydryl enzymes, affecting their activity, thereby severely interfering with tissue metabolism and causing poisoning, so dimercaprol is used for detoxification in clinical emergency treatment. In addition, it has a strong corrosive effect on the skin and mucous membranes; it has a killing effect on malaria parasites, amoebas, and other microorganisms; long-term absorption of small amounts enhances assimilation and promotes bone marrow hematopoietic function.