Huang Lian Shang Qing Wan - Coptis Clearance Pill - TCM Herbal Formula

Chinese Name: Huang Lian Shang Qing Wan
English Name: Coptis Clearance Pill

Formula Category


Clinical Usage and Indications

Coming Soon...

Related TCM Diagnostic Patterns


Staff Clinician Notes:

There are no staff notes at this time.

Cautions and Contraindications:

None at this time.  As always consult with an acupuncturist/herbalist before use.

Related Western Medical Conditions:


Individual Chinese Herbs In This Formula:


  • Bo He
  • Herb Functions
    • Expels wind heat particularly from the head region - fever, headaches, red eyes, cough, sore throat.
    • Vents rashes - accelerates the activity of rashes towards the surface to quicken healing.
    • Resolves LV Qi Stagnation - emotional issues, PMS, menstrual issues, pressure in chest or sides of body.

  • Contraindications
    • May contribute to insufficient lactation in nursing mothers
    • Avoid excessive sweating/use in weak patients or those who sweat easily
    • May injure yin, use caution in yin deficiency patients

  • Chuan Xiong
  • Herb Functions
    • Invigorate blood, promote movement of Qi - any blood stasis pattern, important for gynecological issues (amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, difficult labor, lochioschesis).
    • Expels wind and alleviates pain - headache (temporal, vertex), dizziness, painful obstructions, skin issues.
    • Headache - moves qi upward and alleviates pain; headaches due to wind, heat, cold, blood deficiency.

  • Da Huang
  • Herb Functions
    • Drains heat and purges accumulations - high fever, profuse sweating, thirst, constipation, abdominal distention and pain, delirium, yellow tongue coating, full pulse which indicates intestinal heat excess or yang ming stage illness.
    • Drains heat from the blood - blood in the stool from bleeding hemorrhoids or heat in the intestine; vomting blood or nosebleed accompanied by constipation; painful eyes or fire toxin sores due to heat in the blood level.
    • Drains damp-heat via the stool - jaundice, dysentery, lin syndrome.
    • Invigorates the blood and dispels blood stasis - amenorrhea, abdominal masses, fixed pain due to blood stasis (recent and long-term blood stasis).
    • Clears heat and reduces fire toxicity - for burns, hot skin.

  • Contraindications
    • Avoid During Pregnancy and During Nursing
    • Avoid in exterior disorders and deficiency of qi and/or blood

  • Dang Gui
  • Herb Functions
    • Tonifies the blood, regulates menses - pallid, ashen complexion, tinnitus, blurred vision, palpitations, irregular menses, amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea.
    • Invigorates/harmonizes the blood, disperses cold - important herb to stop pain due to blood stasis - abdominal pain, trauma, carbuncles due to blood stasis, chronic bi.
    • Moistens dry intestines due to blood deficiency.
    • Reduces swellings, expels pus, generates flesh - sores.

  • Ge Gen
  • Herb Functions
    • Releases muscles, clears heat - exterior disease in subcutaneous region and muscles (governed by spleen and stomach) - fever, headache, stiffness in the back and the neck.
    • Nourishes fluids, alleviates thirst - stomach heat, externally-contracted heat.
    • Vents measles - accelerates rash at early stages.
    • Alleviates diarrhea - diarrhea or dysenterial disorders due to heat; may be used for spleen deficiency diarrhea if combined with other herbs.
    • Alleviates symptoms of hypertension - headaches, dizziness, tinnitus.

  • Huang Lian
  • Herb Functions
    • Drains fire, relieves toxicity - high fever, irritability, disorientation, delirium, painful, red eyes, red tongue, sore throat, boils, carbuncles, abscesses.
    • Clears heat, drains dampness - for damp-heat in the stomach or intestine, diarrhea or dysenteric disorder, vomiting and/or acid regurgitation due to stomach heat.
    • Clears heart fire - irritability, insomnia.
    • Clears heat and stops bleeding - nosebleed, blood in the urine, stool, vomiting due to hot blood.
    • Topically for red, painful eyes and ulcerations of the tongue and mouth.

  • Huang Qin
  • Herb Functions
    • Clears heat, drains fire, especially from the upper warmer - heat patterns with fever, irritability, thirst, cough, thick, yellow sputum, hot sores and swellings.
    • Clears heat, dries dampness - damp-heat in the stomach or intestines, diarrhea, dysentery; damp warm-febrile disease with fever, stifling sensation in the chest, thirst with no desire to drink; damp-heat in the lower jiao - lin syndrome; damp-heat jaundice.
    • Clears heat, stops bleeding - vomiting and/or coughing of blood, nosebleed, blood in the stool.
    • Clears heat, calms the fetus - restless fetus due to heat.
    • Sedates liver yang rising - headache, irritability, red eyes, bitter taste, flushed face.

  • Jiang Huang
  • Herb Functions
    • Invigorate blood, unblock menses - chest and abdominal pain, amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea, pain and swelling due to trauma.
    • Promote the movement of Qi, alleviate pain - epigastric and/or abdominal pain.
    • Expel wind, promote movement of blood - wind damp painful obstruction w/blood stasis (particularly in the shoulders).

  • Jie Geng
  • Herb Functions
    • Opens up and disseminates lung qi, expels phlegm - cough (wind-heat/cold), benefits the throat (sore, loss of voice).
    • Promotes discharge of pus.
    • Guides other herbs to the upper body.

  • Ju Hua
  • Herb Functions
    • Disperses wind, clears heat (bitter, cold) - headache, fever.
    • Clears liver and the eyes (sweet, cold) - wind-heat in the liver channel manifesting with red, painful, dry eyes or excessive tearing, or yin deficiency of the kidneys and liver with floaters, blurry vision, or dizziness.

  • Contraindications
    • Avoid in qi deficiency with poor appetite/diarrhea.

  • Lian Qiao
  • Herb Functions
    • Clear heat and toxins, dissipates nodules - carbuncles and hot sores, neck lumps.
    • Expel wind-heat - fever, slight chills, sore throat, headache.

  • Tian Hua Fen
  • Herb Functions
    • Clears and drains lung heat, transforms phlegm, moistens lung dryness.
    • Drains heat, generates fluid (fluids injured) - thirst, irritability, wasting and thirsting disorder, cough, thick sputum.
    • Relieves toxicity, expels pus - toxic hot carbuncles, breast abscess.

  • Contraindications
    • Avoid during Pregnancy.

  • Xuan Shen
  • Herb Functions
    • Clears Heat, Cools Blood. Bleeding, fever, dry mouth, purplish tongue.
    • Nourishes Yin. Particularly for the sequel of warm febrile disease with constipation, irritability.
    • Drains Fire, Relieves Toxicity. Swollen, red eyes, sore throat.
    • Softens Harness (salty), Dissipates phlegm fire nodules. Swollen, sore throat, neck lumps.

  • Contraindications
    Incompatible with Li Lu.
  • Zhi Zi
  • Herb Functions
    • Clears heat (Heart and Liver), eliminates irritability - heat patterns with fever, restlessness, insomnia, delirium, stifling sensation in the chest.
    • Drains damp heat - lin (urinary dysfunction) syndrome due to damp-heat in the lower warmer, damp-heat and constrained liver and gallbladder causing jaundice, damp-heat in the gall bladder and triple heater channels of the face - eyes, nose, sores in the mouth and face.
    • Cools the blood, stops bleeding - nosebleed, blood in vomit, stool, urine; (needs to partially charred).
    • Topically for blood stasis due to trauma, reduces swelling.

  • Contraindications
    • Avoid in patients with loose stools and/or loss of appetite due to cold from deficiency.