Liuwei Anxiao Capsules, a Patent Medicine for Stomach Pain, Constipation and Dysmenorrhea
Liuwei Anxiao Jiaonang (Six-Ingredient Peaceful-Dispersing Capsules) is a common Chinese patent medicine. Its composition is six herbs: zangmuxiang (Aucklandia Radix, Tibetan), dahuang (Rhei Radix et Rhizoma), shannai (Kaempferiae Rhizoma), hanshuishi (Gypsum Rubrum), hezi (Chebulae Fructus), and jianhua (alkaline ash). The formula comes from the 2010 edition of the Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China; it is also called Liuwei Anxiao San. Because a ready-made patent medicine is sold on the market, patients are not advised to prepare this drug themselves.
Liuwei Anxiao Jiaonang mainly promotes digestion and guides out stagnation. It is indicated for stomach pain, constipation, indigestion and women's dysmenorrhea caused by disharmony of the spleen and stomach with retained accumulation. Because the product contains dahuang (rhubarb), it must not be taken long-term. Though rhubarb treats constipation, long-term use causes more severe habitual constipation, so once Liuwei Anxiao Jiaonang has relieved the symptoms, stop using it. Patients with habitual constipation should not use this product and should switch to another approach. For stomach pain and dysmenorrhea, Liuwei Anxiao Jiaonang may be stopped once the pain is relieved.
In this formula, muxiang and shannai are both aromatic herbs that move qi, guide out stagnation and stop pain; dahuang both activates blood and unblocks the menses and loosens the bowels, but the rhubarb anthraquinones it contains have the side effect of causing habitual constipation. Hanshuishi clears heat and downbears fire, opens orifices and reduces swelling; hezi has broad-spectrum antibacterial action and also stops diarrhea. The TCM "alkaline ash" is a mineral drug whose main component is sulfate—a strong purgative; the strong bowel-cleansing laxative hospitals give before colonoscopy is magnesium sulfate.
Thus this formula has a good laxative effect, but such herbs, used too much, damage the righteous qi; it is suitable for acute disease but not for chronic disease. If the patient has loose stools or diarrhea, this formula should not be used. It may also be used as symptomatic supportive treatment for mental-disorder patients presenting with mania, constipation, headache and abdominal pain.