What it is:
This herb consists of the root and rhizome of Gentiana manshurica Kitag., or Gentiana scabra Bge., or Gentiana trifloraPall., or Gentianarigescens Franch.(family Gentianaceae),grown in every part of the northern andsouthern China. The herb is collected in autumn, dried in sunlight, cut intopieces and usedunprepared.

Property:
Bitter in flavour, cold in property,acting on the liverand gallbladder channels.

Effects:
Clearing away heat, removing dampness and purging fire in the liver andgallbladder.

Used for:
1. Jaundice due to damp-heat. It is usually used with Oriental Wormwood and capejasmine fruit. For the downward flow of damp-heat manifested as scrotal swelling,perineal pruritus and yellow thick leukor-rhagia, it is often used with plantain seed and flavescent sophora root.

2. Fire of excess type in the liver andgallbladder manifested as headache, fullnessin the head, blood-shot, swollen andpainful eyes, pain inthe hypochondriac region, bitter taste in the mouth, and deafness. It is often with scutellaria root, capejasmine fruit, and bupleurum root, as in Decoction of Gentiana for Purging Liver-fire(Longdan Xiegan Tang).

3. Wind syndromeinduced by excessive heat in the liver marked by persistent high fever, spasm andconvulsion. It isusually used withcoptis, uncaria stem with hooks and soon as in Pill for Removing Heat from the Liver and Relieving Con-vulsion (Liangjing Wan).

Dosage andadministration: 3-6g,decocted in water for an oral dose or used in bolus and powder.

Precautions:
The dosage should not be too big and the herb should be avoided in cases of cold syn-dromes of deficiency type of the spleen andstomach.