Yixian Dan (One Immortal Pill) for Lower-Limb Swelling and Pain with Inability to Flex and Extend

Gujin Yijian (Medical Mirrors Ancient and Modern) contains a formula called "Yixian Dan." Its composition is: Cyathula (chuanniuxi) and Clematis (weilingxian), in equal parts. The herbs are ground together into a fine powder; refined honey is used as an excipient to form pills the size of a parasol tree seed (about soybean-sized, roughly 6 mm in diameter). Fifteen pills are taken each time, on an empty stomach.

The formula may also be decocted. The decoction dose is: Cyathula 15–30 g, Clematis 15–30 g, decocted in water and taken on an empty stomach morning and evening. The formula tonifies the liver and kidney, dispels wind and dampness. It treats lower-limb swelling and pain, spasms, and inability to flex and extend due to liver-kidney deficiency with downward invasion of wind-dampness.

This condition is often caused by lower-limb thrombosis or atherosclerotic vascular disease of the lower limbs; it may also be seen in diabetic foot.

If the patient's lower limbs cannot flex and extend freely, Paeonia Alba 15 g, Licorice 10 g, Lycopodium (shenjincao) 15–30 g, and Chaenomeles (mugua) 30 g may be added as appropriate. If lower-limb swelling is marked, add Polyporus (zhuling) 10 g, Poria 15–30 g, Han Fangji (Stephania tetrandra) 20–30 g, Atractylodes 15–30 g, Aucklandia (muxiang) 10 g, Magnolia bark (houpo) 10 g, and Plantago seed (cheqianzi) 15 g. For damp-heat pouring downward, add Atractylodes lancea (cangzhu) 10 g, Phellodendron 10 g, Coix seed (yiyiren) 30 g, and Glabrous Greenbrier (tufuling) 30 g. If pain extends to the lower back, add Dipsacus (xuduan) 10 g and Eucommia (duzhong) 10 g.