Trichosanthes Fructus, Gua Lou 瓜蒌

Gua Lou (TCM)

Trichosanthes kirilowii flower (left), fruit (right)
(Photos by 杉山龍彦) (Left: Wikimedia; Right: Wikimedia)

Botanical name:
Trichosanthes kirilowii (syn. T. japonica), T.  rosthornii (syn. T. uniflora)

Parts used:
Fruit

Temperature & Taste:
Cold, Moist. Sweet

Classification:
P. Clear Phlegm

Uses:
1. Moistens the Lungs, Clears Phlegm-Heat:
-Cough with yellow, hard-to-clear sputum

2. Moves Qi, Opens the Chest:
-pressure, a stifling feeling, constriction or pain in the chest and diaphragm

3. Clears Pus, Resolves Abscesses:
-Abscess of the Lungs, Breast or Intestines

DOSE:
9–20 grams in Decoction

Main Combinations:
1. Cough from Hot-Phlegm:
i. with hard-to-clear sputum, with Fritillaria Zhe Bei Mu and Platycodon Jie Geng.
ii. with focal distention in the chest and abdomen with Pinellia Ban Xia and Citrus Chen Pi
2. Painful Chest obstruction with Pinellia Ban Xia and Garlic Chive (Allium macrostemi, Xie Bai)
3. Abscess:
i. early stage Breast Abscess, with Dandelion (Pu Gong Ying) and Frankincense (Ru Xiang)
ii. Lung Abscess (and other abscess) with Myrrh and Frankincense
iii. Intestinal (or other) Abscess with Heat and Toxin and Deficiency, with Lonicera Jin Yin Hua, Forsythia Lian Qiao, Astragalus Huang Qi (as in Expel Pus Powder [Pai Nong San])

Cautions:
1. Not used for Diarrhea from Stomach and Spleen weakness.

DRUG INTERACTION:
1. Not used with Aconite species (counteracts); Incompatible with Ginger and Achyranthes Niu Xi.

Main Preparations used: