《孫真人備急千金要方》Vol. 13

Formula for Infants and Young Children

Chapter Eight: Treatment of Abscesses, Carbuncles, and Scrofula, Including Discussion and Moxibustion Methods

Lulutang Decoction

Treats abscesses and carbuncles caused by heat toxins in children, as well as red and white erysipelas and boils.

Formula: Lulucao, Forsythia fruit (the Zhouhou Fang uses Baiwei), Baiji, mirabilite (the Zhouhou Fang uses peony root), and licorice, six zhu each; rhubarb, one liang; Cimicifuga rhizome, immature bitter orange, ephedra, and Scutellaria root, nine zhu each.

Cut the ten ingredients into pieces. Boil them in one and a half sheng of water until five he of liquid remain.

Dose according to the child’s age in days: from one to seven days old, give one he per dose, divided into three administrations; from eight to fifteen days, one and a half he per dose, divided into three administrations; from sixteen to twenty days, two he per dose, divided into three administrations; from twenty to thirty days, three he per dose, divided into three administrations; from thirty to forty days, five he per dose, divided into three administrations.

The Zhouhou Fang says that adults should take two liang of each ingredient and three liang of rhubarb. Boil the herbs in one dou of water until three sheng remain, then divide into three doses. To treat erysipelas, also prick the affected area to draw blood, making the punctures close to the channels. The formula recorded in the Jingxin Lu omits forsythia fruit and instead includes Anemarrhena rhizome, peony root, and rhinoceros horn, in equal quantities.

Wuxiang Lianqiao Decoction

Treats swellings in children caused by pathogenic wind, heat, and toxins: the swollen area may appear white; or there may be malignant lumps, scrofula, or carbuncles attached to the bone. The joints may be difficult to bend and extend, or white erysipelas may spread over the whole body, producing white spots with persistent itching.

Formula: green agarwood, frankincense, clove, agarwood, ephedra, and Scutellaria root, six zhu each; rhubarb, two liang; musk, three zhu; forsythia fruit, Sargassum, Belamcanda rhizome, Cimicifuga rhizome, and immature bitter orange, half a liang each; bamboo sap, three he.

Cut the fourteen ingredients into pieces. Boil them in four sheng of water until the liquid is reduced by half. Add the bamboo sap and boil until one sheng and two he remain. For children aged one hundred to two hundred days, give three he per dose; for children aged two hundred days to one year, give five he per dose. Another version omits ephedra.

Lianqiao Pills

Treats children who, for no apparent reason, develop alternating chills and fever, yet remain as robust as usual, while the body …

When nodules or scrofulous swellings (enlarged lymph nodes in the neck) appear, or when hard, painless lumps form beneath the chest, abdomen, flanks, or back, use the formula called “Formula for Nodular Wind-Qi Swellings”:

Forsythia fruit, mulberry root bark, white-flowered amur corktree bark, moutan bark, saposhnikovia root, amur corktree bark, cassia bark, fermented soybean, angelica pubescent root, and gentiana macrophylla root, one liang each; seaweed, half a liang.

Grind these eleven ingredients into powder and use honey to form pills about the size of small beans. Give a three-year-old child five pills per dose, gradually increasing to ten. For children over five, increase the dose as appropriate.

For erysipelas (a sudden, extensive red and swollen skin eruption, often accompanied by fever), when the swelling and redness are severe, the body is hot, and various treatments have failed to make it subside, use this formula:

Chalkstone, sixteen zhu; gypsum, thirteen zhu; dried indigo, twelve zhu; rhinoceros horn, bupleurum root, and apricot kernels, eight zhu each; anemarrhena root, ten zhu; licorice, five zhu; antelope horn, six zhu; peony root and baical skullcap root, seven zhu each; gardenia fruit, eleven zhu; bamboo sap, one sheng; clarified fresh kudzu juice, four he; honey, two liang.

Coarsely cut the fifteen ingredients. Add five sheng of water and the bamboo sap, then boil until three sheng and three he remain. Strain out the herbs. Add the apricot-kernel oil, kudzu juice, and honey, and simmer over low heat until two sheng remain. Give a child aged one or two two he per dose; increase the amount as appropriate for older children.

Ephedra Decoction, for childhood erysipelas with swelling, wind-toxin, and wind rash:

Ephedra, one and a half liang; angelica pubescent root, blackberry lily rhizome, licorice, cassia bark, green costus root, gypsum, and baical skullcap root, one liang each.

Coarsely cut these eight ingredients. Add four sheng of water and boil until one sheng remains. Divide into four doses for a three-year-old child, giving two doses per day.

Another formula for severe childhood erysipelas and wind rash:

Ephedra, cimicifuga rhizome, and kudzu root, one liang each; blackberry lily rhizome, clove, and licorice, half a liang each; gypsum, half a he.

Coarsely cut these seven ingredients. Add three sheng of water and boil until one sheng remains. Divide into three doses for a three-year-old child, giving three doses per day.

Wash-and-apply Decoction, for various kinds of childhood erysipelas:

Rhubarb, licorice, Chinese angelica, Szechuan lovage rhizome, dahurian angelica root, angelica pubescent root…

The original text ends here; the remaining ingredients and instructions are not recorded. Note: Liang, zhu, sheng, and he are ancient units of measure. “Coarsely cut” means chopping or roughly processing the herbs before boiling them.

Scutellaria root, peony root, cimicifuga, agarwood, green wood-fragrant root, and magnolia bark (one liang each); mirabilite (three liang).

Cut all thirteen ingredients into small pieces. Boil them in twelve sheng of water until four sheng of liquid remain. Strain out the solids, then add the mirabilite. Soak cotton cloth in the liquid and apply it to the affected area while it is comfortably warm. Replace the cloth when the liquid dries, and continue until the condition is cured.

A prescription for treating “urine-stove cinnabar” in children (a form of erysipelas that the ancients named for the location and shape of the rash): The condition begins between the thighs or around the navel and spreads toward the genital area; the glans of the penis also becomes red.

Take one dou of chopped mulberry root bark. Boil it in two dou of water until one dou of liquid remains, and use this to bathe the child.

A prescription for treating erysipelas in children:

Pound stringy stonecrop, squeeze out the juice, and apply it to the affected area. It is effective. Other prescriptions for erysipelas are detailed in another volume.

A prescription for treating wandering red swelling in children: If it spreads over the whole body and reaches the chest and abdomen, it may be fatal.

Pound Fulonggan (the earth from inside a stove) into powder, mix it evenly with egg white, and apply it to the affected area. Replace the medicine when it dries.

Another prescription: Grind white beans into powder, mix with water, and apply. Do not let the dressing dry.

A prescription for treating redness on one side of a child’s body that gradually spreads:

Cut up ox-knee root and licorice root. Take five sheng in total, add eight sheng of water, and bring to a boil three times. Strain out the solids, then mix the liquid with Fulonggan powder and apply it to the affected area.

A prescription for treating redness and swelling on a child’s body:

Fry rice flour until it turns black, mix it with saliva, and apply.

Another prescription: Grind Fulonggan and the ash of burnt, tangled hair into powder. Mix with ointment and apply.

A prescription for treating sudden blue-black discoloration of a child’s abdominal skin:

Mix lead powder with wine and apply it to the affected area. If it is not treated promptly, the child may die within moments.

In addition, apply moxibustion at five points: half a cun above, below, and on each side of the navel, and one cun below the xiphoid process (the lower end of the sternum). Apply three moxa cones at each point. One cone is the amount of moxa used for a single burning cone.

Five-Fragrance Immature Bitter Orange Decoction: For treating lumps that appear after a child is exposed to wind-heat. The lumps are hard, like hemp seeds, and the skin itches; scratching causes the skin to peel and ooze. It is also used when this kind of condition spreads over the whole body and face and recurs year after year.

Green wood-fragrant root, nine zhu; musk, six zhu; clove, frankincense, agarwood, saposhnikovia root, gentian root, and langdu root, half a liang each; cimicifuga, Scutellaria root, amur cork tree root, and ephedra, one liang each; immature bitter orange, one and a half liang; rhubarb, one liang and eighteen zhu. The source text ends here; the subsequent directions for use are not recorded.

For the fourteen ingredients listed above, chop them finely, add five sheng of water, and boil until one sheng and eight ge of liquid remain. Children aged five or six should take four to five ge per dose; those aged seven or eight should take six ge per dose. For children aged ten to fourteen or fifteen, add half a liang of rhubarb and increase the water to one dou. Boil until two and a half sheng remain, then divide into three doses.

A formula for treating fire-burn-like sores over a child’s whole body

The child’s body is covered with sores about the size of sesame seeds. Some discharge pus, and they hurt at times and itch at others:

Licorice, peony, bai lian, scutellaria, coptis, phellodendron, and sophora root, half a liang each.

Grind the seven ingredients into a fine powder, mix evenly with honey, and apply it to the sores twice during the day and once at night. Alternatively, boil them into a medicinal liquid and use it to wash the sores.

A formula for treating early-stage blisters and ulcerated sores in children

These blisters are sores that, when they first appear, resemble burns and have blisters or fluid on the surface. They are also called ulcerated sores:

Pound peach kernels, mix them with face cream, and apply the mixture. This formula is also used to treat redness and swelling over the whole body.

Another formula: burn horse bones to ash and apply it to the affected area.

Mercury ointment for treating heat sores in children

Mercury, lead powder, and pine resin, three liang each.

First boil the pine resin in four sheng of lard until all its moisture has evaporated. Add the mercury and lead powder, then stir until the mercury can no longer be seen. Apply to the affected area.

A formula for treating sores all over a child’s body

Peony, coptis, and scutellaria, five liang each; sophora root, eight liang; rhubarb, two liang; cnidium seeds, one sheng; phellodendron, five liang; Smilax glabra, one jin.

Chop the eight ingredients, add two dou of water, and boil until one dou of liquid remains. Use it to bathe the child.

A sophora-root decoction for bathing children and treating persistent sores in many places over the body

Sophora root, eight liang; burnet, coptis, cowherb seeds, angelica pubescens, and mugwort leaves, five liang each; bamboo leaves, two sheng.

Chop the seven ingredients, add three dou of water, and boil until one dou of liquid remains. Use it to wash the child. After washing, apply coptis powder.

A formula for treating sores on the head and face and fever in a three-day-old infant

Cimicifuga, bupleurum, and gypsum, six zhu each; licorice and angelica, twelve zhu each; rhubarb and scutellaria, eighteen zhu each.

Roughly chop the seven ingredients above. Boil them in four sheng of water until two sheng of liquid remain, then divide into doses. Give three doses during the day and one at night. Adjust the amount according to the child’s age and build.

Formula for Sores over a Child’s Body and Head

Take an appropriate amount of elm bark, dry it in the sun, and grind it into a fine powder. Sift the powder, mix it with vinegar, spread it on a piece of cotton cloth, and apply it to the sores. The worms in the sores will come out on their own. Alternatively, mix the powder with lard and apply it.

Zhishi Wan: For Itching in Children Caused by Wind Pathogens

The child’s skin itches and hurts, as though affected by scabies. Scratching brings out fluid, and bumps the size of hemp seeds appear over the body. The condition tends to recur every year. The child’s face looks puffy and swollen, while the hands and feet are withered. The hair is fine and yellowish, the skin lacks luster, and the breath through the nose is obstructed. This is caused by excessive internal heat in early childhood, followed by an invasion of wind pathogens; wind and heat then struggle together. If left untreated, it may develop into a severe wind disorder.

One liang each of zhishi, chrysanthemum, shechuangzi, fangfeng, jili zi, baiwei, and duckweed; half a liang each of tianxiong, mahuang, and loulu.

Grind the ten ingredients into a fine powder, mix with honey, and form pills the size of soybeans. Give a five-year-old ten pills per dose, gradually increasing to twenty pills, twice a day. Increase the dose as appropriate for children over five; older children may take the powder directly.

Formula for Itching and Wind Rash in Children Caused by Wind Pathogens

One liang each of shuodiao, fangfeng, yangtao, shinan, qinjiao, shengma, kushen, yinyu, yuanhua (also called chongwei), jili, shechuangzi, zhishi, and alum.

Roughly chop the thirteen ingredients above. Boil them in three dou of rice-water until one dou remains, then strain out the herbs. Add the alum and bring the liquid briefly to a boil. Use it to bathe the child.

Another Formula

Grind niuxi into a fine powder and take it with wine, one square-inch spoonful at a time (an ancient measure for powdered medicine).

For a draining sore that has not healed for many years, grind niuxi into powder and apply it to the affected area. The text also recommends this formula for bone abscesses, epilepsy, and scrofula, describing it as highly effective.

Zelan Decoction: For Erysipelas and Wind Rash Invading the Abdomen, a Potentially Life-Threatening Condition

Twelve zhu each of zelan, chuanxiong, fuzi, yinyu, gaoben, mangcao, and xixin.

Roughly chop the seven ingredients above. Boil them in three sheng of water until one and a half sheng remain, then divide into four doses. Give this decoction first, before carrying out other treatments.

Formula for Swelling of a Child’s Hands, Feet, and Body

Soak the affected areas in warm urine. The text says this works well.

Take fifty croton seeds, remove their kernels and outer skins, and boil them in three sheng of water until only one sheng remains. Dip cotton cloth in the decoction and wipe the affected area; the eruption will disappear as you wipe. This prescription also treats hidden rashes—that is, urticaria, a condition in which itchy welts rise on the skin.

The text explains: When a young child develops small sores on the head that keep spreading and weeping, itch and hurt, and discharge yellow, paste-like pus without forming scabs, and do not heal for years, the condition is also called “Dutouchuang” (a chronic sore of the head in children). To treat it, first wash the affected area with Red Dragon Bark Decoction and Gastrodia Decoction, administer Loulu Decoction by mouth, and apply Flying Crow Powder and the Huanglian, Lead Powder, and Mercury Ointment. The full details of these prescriptions are recorded in other volumes.

Veratrum Ointment: Treats various head sores in children that have persisted for a long time, itch and ulcerate, and do not form scabs. Use two liang each of veratrum, Coptis, realgar, baical skullcap, and pine resin; half a jin of lard; and five liang of alum—seven ingredients in all. Grind the medicines into powder, add the lard, and heat until they combine into an ointment. First wash the sores with Red Dragon Bark Decoction and Gastrodia Decoction, then apply the ointment. Red Dragon Bark is the bark of the oak tree.

A prescription for head sores in children that have not healed for years: Use one and a half liang each of pine resin, Sophora root, and Coptis; one liang each of rhubarb and lead powder (used externally to dry and promote healing); one liang and six zhu each of baical skullcap and mercury (a traditional unit of weight, with twenty-four zhu to one liang); half a liang of alum; and eighteen zhu of cnidium—nine ingredients in all. Grind them into a fine powder, mix with lard made in the twelfth lunar month, and grind until no grains of mercury can be seen. Then apply it to the affected area.

Another prescription: Mix fine dust from inside a house with the sediment from the bottom of an oil jar. First wash the sores with soapbean decoction, then apply the mixture.

Another prescription: Apply tiger fat to the affected area. It also treats white baldness, a condition in which white scaly patches form on the scalp and hair falls out.

Another prescription: For any sores among the hair with white centers, apply bear fat—the white fat from a bear’s back.

Prescription for head sores in children: Use one liang of lead powder and two liang of Coptis—two ingredients in all—and grind them into powder. First wash off the scabs, dry the sores, and apply the powder; they will heal. If they recur, apply the powder again in the same way.

Another prescription: Use one liang each of lead powder and forsythia, and half a liang of mercury—three ingredients in all. First boil the forsythia in water, then add the lead powder and mercury and mix thoroughly. Apply to the affected area.

Another prescription: Mix two liang each of white pine resin and lead powder with one liang of mercury and four liang of lard to make an ointment for external application.

Decoct the four ingredients above together, then strain out the dregs. Add powdered mercury and mix well before applying to the affected area. Adults with the same condition may use this method as well.

Bitter Sophora Decoction for Treating Scalp Sores in Children

Bitter sophora root, baical skullcap root, Chinese goldthread, Amur cork tree bark, licorice root, rhubarb, and Szechuan lovage (one liang each); tribulus fruit (three ge).

Cut the eight ingredients into small pieces and boil them in six sheng of water until two sheng of liquid remain. Soak a cloth in the liquid and apply it to the sores, changing the dressing several times a day.

Formula for Treating Malignant Swellings, Acne, Boils, and Various Sores on Children’s Heads

Burn the pointed end of male feces to ash and mix it with cured pork fat. First wash the affected area with vinegar and rice-washing water, then dry it and apply the medicine.

Formula for Treating Ringworm Sores on Children’s Heads

Mix rooster droppings with aged soybean paste liquid and bitter wine. First wash the sores, then apply the mixture.

Another formula: Mix lilac daphne flowers with cured pork fat until they form a paste. Wash the scabs from the affected area, then apply it once a day. (The Qianjin Yifang says this formula treats white ringworm.)

Formula for Treating Ringworm Sores on Children’s Heads

Grind white mustard seeds into a fine powder. First wash the affected area, then apply the powder.

Another formula: Take turnip leaves that have not been wet with water, burn them to ash, mix the ash with pork fat, and apply it to the affected area.

Formula for Treating Ringworm Sores on Children’s Heads with Hair Loss and Severe Itching

Kudzu vine (ground into powder), pork fat, and mutton fat, one liang each.

Combine the three ingredients and heat until melted. Let the mixture cool before applying. Apply no more than three times.

Single-Ingredient Formula of Catalpa Leaves for Treating Hair Loss on Young Children’s Heads

Pound catalpa leaves and extract the juice. Apply it to the head; the text says the hair will grow back quickly.

Formula for Treating Hair Loss on Children’s Heads

Burn crucian carp to ash and grind it into powder. Mix it with soybean paste liquid and apply.

Formula for Treating Fistulous Sores in Children

Apply a thick layer of lime from a tomb to the affected area. It is said to work well.

Another formula: Burn mulberry roots to ash and apply the ash to the affected area. Alternatively, burn the horn of a black sheep to ash, mix it with mulberry-root ash, and apply the mixture.

Formula for Treating Fistulas with Deep Ulcers in Children

Cinnabar and rhubarb, thirty zhu each; realgar, lacquer-head Lu ru, and orpiment, twenty-four zhu each; horse-tooth alum and Chinese globe-flower, eighteen zhu each; Chinese goldthread, thirty-six zhu.

Cut the eight ingredients into small pieces, add one sheng and three ge of pork fat, and simmer over low heat. Bring it to a boil three times, cooling it each time. When the ointment is ready, strain out the dregs, add the various medicinal powders, and mix well. Apply after the ointment has set.

Formula for Treating Malignant Sores in Children

Stir-fry fermented black beans until yellow, grind them into a fine powder, and apply it to the sores. They should heal after no more than three applications.

Treating childhood ulcerous sores that appear at the beginning of the month and often discharge yellow fluid

Mix vinegar and oil thoroughly, then boil until the mixture resembles porridge. Apply it while still hot, changing the dressing every two days.

Before applying it again, wash the sore with a decoction made from Chinese honeylocust pods, then apply the medicine.

Treating childhood sores said to wax and wane with the moon

These sores are described as lesions that seem to change as the moon waxes and wanes. Mix lead white, an ancient white powder containing lead, with butter and apply it to the affected area. The sores should heal in five days.

Treating such sores when they occur at the body’s nine openings

Burn earthworm castings to ash, grind them into powder, mix with lard, and apply.

Another remedy: Mix the powder with water and apply it to the affected area.

Treating childhood spreading, weeping sores

Take equal amounts of yellow earth from the stove firebox and ash made from burned hair. Grind them together, mix with pork fat, and apply.

Treating childhood yellow, crusted sores

Take equal amounts of soil from a crossroads and soil from beneath a stove. Grind them together and apply to the affected area. According to the original text, this remedy also treats night crying.

Another remedy: Burn mugwort to ash and apply it to the affected area.

Another remedy: Burn cow dung to ash and apply it. It may also be used to remove scars.

Treating childhood scabies

Burn bamboo leaves to ash, mix with egg white, and apply three times a day. This remedy also treats scabies.

Another remedy: Burn tangled hair to ash and mix thoroughly with cured pork fat from the twelfth lunar month.

Another remedy: Mix rancid butter with lead white and apply.

Treating sores and scabies on a child’s head and face

Grind five sheng of hemp seeds into powder. Add water, strain out the juice, then mix it thoroughly with honey and apply to the affected area. Applying the bile of a white dog is said to work even better.

Treating childhood wet ringworm

Pound wolfberry root into powder and mix it thoroughly with pork fat prepared in the twelfth lunar month before applying.

Another remedy: Pound the green bark of a peach tree into powder, mix with vinegar, and apply twice a day.

Another remedy: Boil horse urine and use it to wash the affected area.

Another remedy: Rub the affected area until the skin breaks, then apply moisture from a cow’s nose.

Another remedy: Burn dog feces to ash, mix with pork fat, and rub it on.

Treating red birthmarks on a child’s body

Wash the mark with horse urine four or five times a day.

Treating red and black birthmarks on a child’s body

Prick the father’s foot with a needle to draw blood, then place it over the birthmark. The text claims that the mark will then fade.

Another remedy: Apply hot dog feces to the affected area; the skin will supposedly curl up and fall away on its own.

Treating warts on a child (commonly called “monkey’s warts”)

Use a needle or small knife to make cuts around the wart until it bleeds. Then apply yellow pus taken from the sore of another person with a sore. Keep the area dry for three days. Once the wart becomes suppurative and its base loosens, it will fall off on its own.

Volume Thirteen of Sun the Perfected’s Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Gold Pieces for Emergencies.