Formulas · Clear Heat 淸熱 · Uihak Jeongjeon (醫學正傳)

Platycodon Decoction

Gilgyeong-tang

한글 길경탕 · Pinyin Jie Geng Tang

桔梗湯

The Bogam carries four formulas called 桔梗湯. This is the 癰疽門 one; the others are registered as gilgyeong-tang-in (咽喉門), gilgyeong-tang-eum (聲音門) and gilgyeong-tang-gae (咳嗽門). The transcription prints 肺癕 for 肺癰 and 桒白皮 for 桑白皮, both normalized here.

Composition 構成

Gilgyeong Jie Geng
桔梗 길경 · Platycodon

4.8 g
Chief 君
Paemo Bei Mu
貝母 패모 · Fritillaria

4.8 g
Chief 君
Danggwi Dang Gui
當歸 당귀 · Korean Angelica

4 g
Deputy 臣
Gwaru Gua Lou
瓜蔞 과루 · Trichosanthes Fruit

4 g
Deputy 臣
Uiiin Yi Yi Ren
薏苡仁 의이인 · Coix Seed

4 g
Deputy 臣
Jigak Zhi Qiao
枳殼 지각 · Bitter Orange

2.8 g
Assistant 佐
Sangbaekpi Sang Bai Pi
桑白皮 상백피 · Mulberry Root Bark

2.8 g
Assistant 佐
Bangpung Fang Feng
防風 방풍 · Siler

2.8 g
Assistant 佐
Hwanggi Huang Qi
黃芪 황기 · Astragalus

2.8 g
Assistant 佐
Haengin Xing Ren
杏仁 행인 · Apricot Kernel

2 g
Assistant 佐
Baekhap Bai He
百合 백합 · Lily Bulb

2 g
Assistant 佐
Gamcho Gan Cao
甘草 감초 · Licorice

2 g
Envoy 使

甘草節, the nodes
Saenggang Sheng Jiang
生薑 생강 · Fresh Ginger

—
Envoy 使

five slices

Total 38.8 g per packet (첩) · representative dosage — verify against source texts. Excludes 1 ingredient measured by count or used as a vehicle, shown as —.

Received this formula from your practitioner? Amounts shown here are classical reference values — granule and prepared products differ. Always follow your prescribed dosage and directions.

Actions 效能

Treats lung abscess
Opens the Lung and drives pus out through the airway
Moistens the Lung and supports the Qi while the pus is expelled

Indications 主治

Pattern-based

Lung abscess (肺癰) with a dry mouth and parched throat
Hidden pain in the chest with purulent bloody sputum
Foul-smelling expectoration that sinks when dropped in water

Biomedical correlates

Lung abscess
Bronchiectasis with purulent sputum
Empyema

Source text 原文

Donguibogam 東醫寶鑑

治肺癰. 桔梗ㆍ貝母各一錢二分, 當歸ㆍ瓜蔞ㆍ薏苡仁各一錢, 枳殼ㆍ桑白皮ㆍ防風ㆍ黃芪各七分, 杏仁ㆍ百合ㆍ甘草節各五分. 右剉, 作一貼, 入薑五片, 水煎服. 《正傳》

Translation

Treats lung abscess. Platycodon and fritillaria, 1 don 2 fun each; Korean angelica, trichosanthes and coix seed, 1 don each; bitter orange peel, mulberry root bark, siler and astragalus, 7 fun each; apricot kernel, lily bulb and licorice node, 5 fun each. Cut up, make one packet, add five slices of ginger, decoct in water and take. — Uihak Jeongjeon 正傳 (Donguibogam · Ongjeo)

Clinical commentary 臨床

The first of the eight formulas the Immun lists for 肺癰, and the fullest. Platycodon and fritillaria at the head are the pus-expelling pair, trichosanthes and coix seed drain the turbid, mulberry root bark and apricot kernel settle the cough, and astragalus with the licorice node is there to push the pus outward rather than merely cool it — the 托裏 idea carried into a chest formula. 肺癰 is the one organ abscess in this group with a solid modern reading. The chapter's own signs — 口吐膿血 coughing up pus and blood, 氣作腥臭 a foul-smelling breath, and sputum that sinks in water — describe a lung abscess, bronchiectasis or an empyema, and the 咳嗽門 of this corpus treats the same entity with much the same drugs. **Purulent bloody sputum with fever needs chest imaging, sputum culture and antibiotics; a lung abscess or empyema frequently needs drainage. This is a historical formula, not a substitute for that care.** — Eui Young (Justin) Chung, L.Ac., Dipl. O.M.