Tibetan Medicine

Tibetan medicine is a very antique medical system based on Buddhist Philosophy and Psychology. It explicates that everything existing or non-existent in the world descends from the mind and the five element. The mind is considered to be the base because all existences and moments depends on its movement; it’s the creator of every external and internal phenomena.

Shivei Heybinpyan

(Shivei Heibingpian Wan)[1] Ingredient: Black borneol,pomegranate seeds, Chinese cinnamon, dried ripe fruit of cardamom, long pepper, Terminalia chebula,natural salt, pumpkin seeds, bile bear. Indication: Wind treatment of illness or Prana, the accumulation of food in the stomach and indigestion. Nausea Mucus disease (Peken), Cholecystitis, Presence of gall stones, A coding gallbladder disease, Jaundice. Posology: Dose: 8-12pills twice a day. 2. Liver – Gallbladder Tonic:[2] It is created on Tibetan Gar-nag formulation and used for weakened liver and gallbladder function. It may be constitutional or steaming from liver damage such as a bile duct inflammation. Tonic is traditionally used to support the function of the gallbladder, by digestive disorders with Nausea and Bloating caused by insufficient production or oozing of the gallbladder.

Composition: It consists of several herbs which is mixed and made into capsule form. 50mg of pomegranate seeds,40mg of each veronica herb, Safflower, Dandelion root,30mg each Cardamom,Cinnamon cassia.25mg of Sodium sulphate,20mg each of Artichoke leaves, watercress herb, kola seeds, medical carbon,centaury,and 10mg each of Indian long Pepper, Pitted Myrobalan fruit. Posology: 2-3 capsule on empty stomach with warm liquid.

Serdok-5

Ingredients: Myrobalan (Fruits), Pomegranate (Fruits), Momordica (Seeds), Small Krasnodev (Flowers). Indications: It has stabilizing special effect on liver cells. It has anti-inflammatory properties, kindle the secretion of bile. It improves its structure and promotes the excretion of bile from liver cells and gall bladder. It improves the loss of appetite after suffering hepatitis, with pancreatic insufficiency. Posology: 3 pieces after a meal washed down with warm boiled water.

Serdox-11

Ingredients: Myrobalan (Fruits), Pomegranate (Fruits), Momordica (Seeds), A Small Krasnodev (Flowers), Mummies and others. Indications: It is used widely to cleanse the liver, vascular, biliary tract. Suppress the heat of the liver. It restores the function of the liver and pancreas. It is used to treat gall bladder, acute and chronic liver disease, including cirrhosis, Cholecystitis, cholelithiasis. It leads to an equilibrium state constitution bile, which is conductive to improving the work of the digestive system. It improves metabolism of the liver cells, blood biochemistry and excretion of bile lipid metabolism: where the vessels are cleaned and preventing occurrence of atherosclerotic plaques. Posology: 3 pills after 30 minutes of meals, washed down with warm boiled water.

Chinese medication Introduction: Chinese medicine is universally sought out as an alternative to surgery by those detected with gallstones. It is evident from comments made by these individuals, and by Western practitioners of Chinese medicine, that many patients hope to take only a small amount of herbs in a convenient form to remove the stones. Acupuncture is a therapy that commonly accompanies use of herbs and is also mentioned here. In China, the diagnosis of gallstones is a new one: it has not been part of traditional Chinese medicine prior to the introduction of modern Western medicine. Symptoms of gallstones were no doubt detected in the past, such as findings of abdominal pain and reactions to fatty foods, but the cause of such symptoms would usually be attributed to disorders such as qi stagnation and abdominal accumulation, rather than gallstones, which cannot be detected directly by traditional Chinese diagnostics. However, since ancient times, the Chinese have been aware of the gallbladder (identified as one of the six fu organs) and aware of its ability to form stones.

Gallstones of the ox (niuhuang) have long been used in traditional medicine: they were listed in the Shennong Bencao Jing (ca. 100 A.D.). It is thought that the medicinal use of the ox gallstone may have originated in India, from which it was then adopted in China,[5] along with other ancient Indian remedies, such as ginger root. In the Chinese tradition, ox gallstone is used to "open the orifices of the heart," when there are symptoms of delirium, convulsions, and loss of consciousness in feverish diseases, and also to treat swellings in the throat and mouth. This latter application is addressed by the popular patent formula Niuhuang Jiedu Pian (Tablet of Ox Gallstone to Remove Toxins). In China, the extracted bile or the whole gallbladder (with bile) from several animals has been used medicinally, such as snake gallbladder given as a health tonic and as a treatment for phlegm disorders, and bear gallbladder as a treatment for injuries and back pain. In modern China, bear bile (combined with curcuma and capillaris) was developed as a treatment for gallstones and gallbladder inflammation (cholecystitis).[6] Even with the Chinese knowledge of gallstones from animals used in medicine, early Chinese medical references to the gallbladder in humans did not include problems specifically related to stone formation.

Modern Chinese Dealing for Gallstones

Treatments aimed specifically at removal of gallstones with Chinese herbs were first described in the Chinese literature of the post-revolutionary period. A review of accomplishments in this field was published in the English language Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, in a 1986 article: Advances in the treatment of cholelithiasis by expulsion of the gallstones.[7] Beginning in the 1950's, various gallstone expulsion decoctions (referred to as lithogogues) were devised by doctors working on this problem and these were proclaimed moderately successful. The decoctions mainly contained herbs from three therapeutic categories: regulating qi to improve the flow of bile and vitalizing blood to alleviate abdominal aching; dispelling heat and dampness that are the main physiological causes of the qi stagnation; and Removing stagnation by purgation. The most frequently mentioned herbs in the various decoctions were: bupleurum, saussurea, chih-shih (or chih-ko), and melia for regulating qi; curcuma and corydalis for vitalizing blood; lysimachia, scute, gardenia, and capillaris for clearing damp heat; and rhubarb and mirabilitum for purgation. Sample decoctions are:[8] lysimachia (100 grams), saussurea (15 grams), chih-shih (15 grams), scute (15 grams), melia (15 grams), rhubarb (10 grams) lysimachia (100 grams), saussurea (25 grams), chih-shih (25 grams), hu-chang (100 grams), rhubarb (25 grams), gardenia (20 grams), corydalis (25 grams).

As detailed accounting of one of the regimens was outlined in Pharmacology and Applications of Chinese Materia Medica. Lithogogue decoction, 200 ml orally, is given. This stimulates bile secretion. Morphine, 5 mg, is injected. This restricts Oddi's sphincter, builds up bile pressure, and relieves pain. · Amyl nitrite, 1 ampoule, is inhaled. This relaxes Oddi's sphincter to allow bile to flow out. 33% magnesium sulfate, 40 ml, is given orally. This induces rapid bile flow and duodenal emptying. 0.5% dilute HCl, 30 ml, is given orally. This further stimulates flow of bile. Rich meal (2-3 fried eggs). This stimulates further dispensing of bile. Electro-acupuncture for 30 minutes. This causes the gallbladder to contract and alleviates symptoms of stone passage. A similar method was reported in the Xinjiang Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Stone Wince With Chinese Herbs

One way to pass stones more easily is to first shrink them. The ability to reduce the size of stones using herbs or other methods is not an established fact. However, certain Chinese herbs have been selected as stone-dissolving herbs. There is one traditional-style formula that is reputed to dissolve stones, called San Jin Tang, or the Decoction of Three Golds. The three golds (jin = gold) are jinqiancao, haijinsha, and jineijin.

The formula was devised at the Shuguang Hospital of the Shanghai College of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Jinqiancao (literally, golden coin weed) refers to a group of herbs that are used interchangeably, and are identified by the region of China in which the herb is found:[11] Sichuan Da Jinqiancao also called guoluhuang, is from Lysimachia christinae Sichuan Xiao Jinqiancao is from Dichondra repens; Guang Jinqiancao is from Desmodium styracifolium Jiangxi Jinqiancao is from Hydrocotyle spithorpioides; Jiangsu Jinqiancao is from Glechoma hederaea and Kunming Jinqiancao is from Lysimachia kunmingcensis. Haijinsha is a very slippery material, that looks like yellowish sea sand (hai = sea, jin = gold, sha = sand); it is the spores of a fern, Lygodium japonicum, commonly called lygodium The slippery quality is associated with the ability to dissolve stones. The material is described as sweet and cold in nature, and it is diuretic.

Like jinqiancao, this herb is mainly used for damp-heat syndromes with urinary retention and it is said to help remove urinary stones. The usual daily dosage is 6-12 grams in decoction, or 2-3 grams in powder form. Jineijin is the inner lining of the gizzard of the chicken (ji = chicken; nei = inside), commonly called gallus (the genus name of the chicken). The chicken gizzard is capable of reducing hard food masses to small pieces; it is included in some herb formulas because it is thought to resolve masses. The material has a sweet taste, a neutral property, and is used mainly to eliminate food stagnation. The usual dosage is 6-12 grams and it may be used in decoction or a smaller amount, 1.5 to 3 grams, taken as a powder. The entire Three Golds Formula includes three additional herbs for damp-heat that affects the kidney and bladder, thus making it a treatment for urinary stones in persons with damp-heat syndrome and urinary retention. The three herbs are pyrrosia (shiwei), abutilon (dongkuizi), and dianthus (qumai) and this combination is derived from Shiwei San, a traditional formula for blocked urinary flow that contains those three herbs plus plantago and talc. A variant of the Three Golds Formula retains the talc and plantago seed of Shiwei San but replaces dianthus with achyranthes (or cyathula), vaccaria, magnolia bark, and chih-shih. The three golds may be added to any traditional formula for urinary blockage when stones are diagnosed. A typical recommendation is to add 30 grams lysimachia, 9 grams of lygodium, and 9 grams of gallus.

The original urinary stone formula can be adjusted to treat gallstones by replacing the three herbs for damp-heat of the kidney/bladder with herbs for damp-heat of the liver/gallbladder. The herbs suitable for this purpose generally have a bitter taste, a cold property, and a dispersing or purging action; for example, one can administer bupleurum, scute, capillaris, and rhubarb. One can also add to the therapy herbs to disperse liver-qi stagnation and accumulation, such as saussurea, magnolia bark, chih-shih, and areca peel. It is reasonable to question whether herb components that help to dissolve and pass urinary stones would also effectively dissolve and pass gallstones, given the differences in stone composition. Jinqiancao, one of the three golds, has been incorporated into numerous modern Chinese therapies for both liver and gallbladder diseases, including most formulas for treating gallstones and cholecystitis. In the Advanced Textbook of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Pharmacology, lysimachia is said to be useful for stone expulsion, including gallstones: "For its effects in expelling stones, this drug is frequently used to treat hepatic, cholecystic, and urinary stones.

To achieve the desired results, it is usually used in large dosage and administered for a long time." The same text mentions that jineijin "removes stones and is indicated for urinary calculus and biliary calculus." On the other hand, haijinsha is only mentioned in that text as a treatment for urinary stones. Whether or not jinqiancao actually dissolves stones, it is known to stimulate bile secretion; further, haijinsha has been used clinically in some formulas for treating gallstones and was mentioned as one of the more commonly used herbs for that purpose in a recent review article examining 40 different gallstone formulas.

Stone Expulsion With Chinese Herbs

A decoction of the Lidan Paishi formula was tested in patients who were monitored for gallbladder function. The treatment, using 10 grams of each ingredient, increased the frequency of bile excretion and did so to an extent greater than that accomplished by Da Chengqi Tang, indicating a valuable contribution for the added herbs (lysimachia (250 grams), capillaris (250 grams), scute (75 grams), saussurea (75 grams), curcuma (75 grams), and rhubarb (125 grams); this formula listing leaves out areca peel, magnolia bark, chih-shih, and mirabilitum. Treatment time with stone expelling formulas is usually several months, though excretion of gallstones may begin to occur within days. In one clinical report, a formula called Dandao Paishi Tang (dan = bile or gallbladder; dao = movement) was administered twice daily. The formula included lysimachia, chih-ko, saussurea, scute, lonicera, gardenia, peony, red peony, atractylodes, gallus, rhubarb, and glauber's salt (xuangmingfen; sodium sulfate); in addition, mirabilitum was given separately, 40 ml each time, twice daily, at 33% solution. Treatment time ranged from one month to 10 months (a few cases continued for longer). A formula called Paishi Tang (Stone Expulsion Decoction) was reported to be moderately effective for treating residual stones in the biliary tract after gallbladder surgery. The decoction contains lysimachia, capillaris, bupleurum, cyperus, melia, chih-ko, saussurea, citrus, and rhubarb (mirabilitum was given separately, 30-40 ml of 50% solution, once or twice daily). Complete removal of stones was claimed for just over half of the patients treated.

Proposal for Comprehensive Gallstone Therapy:

A patient presenting with gallstone reduction or elimination as the objective of treatment should be provided with a substantial number of therapeutic approaches to be used in combination. These include: A diet and exercise program that emphasizes a low fat, high fiber diet and regular daily exercise.. A digestive enzyme preparation that includes ox bile and lipase may be used to help treat symptoms of poor fat digestion. A regular meal schedule that encourages the gallbladder to fill completely between meals. This means minimizing snacking (which is an approach contrary to some dietary recommendations for managing eating disorders and some other health problems). Daily consumption of stone dissolving substances, including the "three golds" and, if possible, bile salts. Acupuncture therapy to regulate circulation of qi, purge the gallbladder, and alleviate pain in the gallbladder region A gallstone purging therapy to eliminate stones that have a diameter of less than 1 cm, to be taken over a period of several days. This therapy would include rhubarb and mirabilitum. The dosage of stone-dissolving substances should be relatively high, corresponding to about 50-60 grams per day in decoction, or about 10-12 grams per day in dried extract form.

As with the treatment using bile salts, stone-dissolving therapies may require as much as six months continual treatment. The gallstone flushing therapy, relying on purgative herbs, may be accompanied by a high fat meal to stimulate gallbladder emptying (some Western practitioners use the so-called "liver flush" which is actually a gallbladder purge, comprised of a large dose of olive oil moderated by lemon juice).