Clears Heat and resolves toxicity — hepatitis, jaundice, carbuncles, burns, snake bite, and throat abscess
Reduces liver enzymes — specifically used in TCM clinical practice for elevated ALT/AST in viral hepatitis, drug-induced liver injury, and alcohol hepatitis
Promotes urination — urinary tract infection, hematuria, and dysuria from Damp-Heat
Cools Blood and reduces swelling — external use for burns, scalds, and infected wounds
Secondary Actions
External application — fresh herb pounded and applied as a poultice for burns, carbuncles, insect bites, and skin ulcers; one of the most commonly used topical emergency herbs in China
Mild laxative — slightly loosens stool in Damp-Heat accumulation patterns
Classic Formulas
Dan Bi Fang (单比方) — single-herb concentrated decoction of Chui Pen Cao (30–60 g dried or 60–120 g fresh) for acute viral hepatitis with elevated transaminases; widely used in modern Chinese hepatology as a standardised preparation (e.g., Chuipen tablets/granules in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia)
Combined with Yin Chen Hao (茵陈蒿) and Zhi Zi (栀子) in formulas for Damp-Heat jaundice with fever and markedly elevated liver enzymes
Classical References
Ben Cao Gang Mu Shi Yi (本草纲目拾遗): records Chui Pen Cao for resolving fire toxins, treating burns, throat swellings, and snake bite — 'applied fresh to burns, it immediately cools and stops pain; taken internally, it clears liver heat'
Zhong Yao Zhi (中药志): documents modern clinical use of Chui Pen Cao specifically for lowering serum transaminases in viral hepatitis — one of the earliest Chinese references to the hepatoprotective application; the official Chuipen preparation is a standardised extract listed in the Chinese Pharmacopoeia 2020
Modern Research
Active Compounds
Sarmentosin (cyanogenic glucoside; principal hepatoprotective compound; inhibits hepatocyte injury)
Hepatoprotective and ALT-lowering: multiple randomised controlled trials in China demonstrate significant reduction of serum ALT and AST in patients with chronic viral hepatitis B following standardised Chui Pen Cao extract treatment; sarmentosin inhibits CCl4-induced hepatocyte necrosis and restores hepatic glutathione in animal models — the most extensively clinically validated hepatoprotective Chinese herb after Yin Chen Hao
Anti-inflammatory: flavonoid fraction from S. sarmentosum inhibits NF-κB and COX-2 in LPS-stimulated macrophages; aqueous extract reduces IL-6, TNF-α, and hepatic stellate cell activation markers in fibrotic liver models — supports the broad Heat-toxin resolving indications beyond hepatitis
Wound healing and anti-infective: fresh herb poultice and decoction wash demonstrate accelerated wound healing, reduced bacterial contamination, and anti-inflammatory activity in burn wound models — validates the extensive traditional topical burn and abscess applications
Safety & Interactions
Contraindications
Spleen-Stomach Deficiency Cold — cool-sour nature impairs digestive Yang; avoid with chronic loose stools, cold abdomen, and weak digestion
Cold-pattern jaundice (pale stools, cold body, absence of fever or thirst) — cool herb would worsen Yang-deficiency jaundice
Cautions
Standard dose: 15–30 g dried herb in decoction; 30–60 g fresh herb; standardised extract (Chuipen tablets): as directed by product labelling
Sarmentosin is a cyanogenic glucoside that can release hydrogen cyanide upon hydrolysis — at standard therapeutic doses in decoction form, this is not a clinical concern as heat and dilution minimise cyanide release; avoid consuming very large quantities of raw fresh herb
Prolonged high-dose use: monitor liver function in patients with pre-existing liver disease, as very high doses in animal models show transient enzyme elevation after initial reduction; standard doses are hepatoprotective
Pregnancy: cool-natured herb with acid-bitter properties; traditionally used with caution in pregnancy; insufficient formal teratogenicity data