Upper Palace Tablets, 100 tablets

This formula is similar go Xuefu Zhuyu Tang (Decoction for Getting Rid of Blood Stasis in the Upper Palace) by Wang Qingren, who is well-known for his development of blood vitalizing formulas (see Persica and Achyranthes Combination, Ancient/Modern Formulas). Two changes have been made: bakeri has been added to help direct the action of the formula to the upper body, and the proportions of herbs have been shifted to emphasize its qi regulating action. Bakeri, related to garlic, regulates qi and alleviates fullness and pain in the chest; it joins platycodon and bupleurum in focusing the action of the formula to the upper body. Xuefu Zhuyu Tang has a high dose of persica and carthamus to rapidly breakdown static blood. In this formula, these herbs are present in their more usual moderate dosage, while the proportions of the qi regulators bupleurum and chih-ko have been increased. Most of the therapeutic applications are expected to be cases where blood stasis is accompanied by underlying qi stagnation (if not, a second formula with strong blood vitalizing action, such as San-chi 17 of Myrrh Tablets, can be taken along with this one). Patients with severe blood stasis are often treated by Western medicine, including the use of anticoagulants and surgical procedures, to rectify the immediate problem. However, when a syndrome of qi stagnation remains untreated, the blood stasis syndrome us not easily resolved, so symptoms can remain. Xuefu Zhuyu Tang is used in China for persistent headaches, unremitting insomnia, and for concussions, as well as treating a variety of cardiac disorders, including coronary heart disease, angina, myocardial infarction, and cor pulmonale.