Pharmaceutical Name:

Radix Sophorae Flavescentis

Botanical Name:

Sophora flavescens Ait.

Common Name:

Flavescent Sophora root

Source of Earliest Record:

Shennong Bencao Jing

Part Used & Method for Pharmaceutical Preparations:

The roots are dug in spring or autumn.  After the fibrous roots have been removed, the roots are cleaned, cut into slices and dried in the sun.

Properties and Taste:

Bitter and cold

Meridian:

Heart, liver, stomach, large intestine and urinary bladder

Functions:

To clear heat and dry dampness
To promote urination
To disperse wind and stop itching

Indications and Combinations:

1.     Damp-heat syndromes:

a)       Damp-heat jaundice.
*Use with Phellodendron bark (Huangbai), Capejasmine (Zhizi), Chinese gentian (Longdancao) and Oriental wormwood (Yinchenhao) .

b)       Damp-heat leukorrhea and eczema of the genitals .
*Use with Phellodendron bark (Huangbai), Cnidium fruit (Shechuangzi) and Chinese gentian (Longdancao).

2.     Skin diseases, including itching of the skin, scabies and impetigo.
*Can be used internally and externally.  The herb is combined with Chinese angelica root (Danggui), Dittany bark (Baixianpi), Broom cypress fruit (Difuzi) and Red peony (Chishao).

3.     Painful urination caused by damp-heat. 
*Used with Dandelion herb (Pugongying) and Pyrrosia leaf (Shiwei).

Dosage:

3-10 g

Cautions:

This herb should never be with the herb Black false bellebore (Lilu).  It is contraindicated in cases with weakness and cold in the spleen and stomach.