Drugs for Resolving Heat phlegm - Most drugs of this kind are cold in property and have the effects of resolving Heat Phlegm. They are indicated for cough, thick and yellow sputum, difficulty in expectoration, epilepsy, convulsion, scrofula, and multiple or metastatic abscesses, and are often combined with Heat clearing drugs. These drugs are not advised in cases of Cold Phlegm and Spleen and Stomach Xu.
15b Antitussives and Expectorants - Clear Cold Phlegm
Drugs whose principal effects are to remove the stagnation of sputum
are clled expectorants; drugs which can allevia
SECTION I Drugs for Resolving Cold Phlegm - Most of these drugs have
a Warm property and can exert the funciton of resolving Cold Phlegm. They
are good for Cold Phlegm syndrome and Dampe Phlegm syndorme manifested
as abundant lucid thin sputum easy to be expectorated. They are also gooed
for cough and asthma, aching limbs and joints, deep rooted carbuncle of
Yin nautre, metastatic abscesses and scrofula due to Cold and Damp Phlegm.
These drugs should not be used or they should be used caustiously for patients
with Heat Phlegm syndrome, dry cough due to Yin Xu, or for those with a
history of hemoptysis and hematemesis.
15c Antitussives and Expectorants - Relaxing Breathing
Drugs for Relieving Cough and Asthma
Drugs of this category have the effects of nourishing the Lung to relieve
cough and lowering the adverwse flow of Qi to relive asthma. They are indicated
for syndorme of cough and dyspnea which is very complicated and may be
manifested as cough without sputum, cough with watery thin sputum or with
yellow thick sputum, cough with dyspnea due to affection by exopathogens,
or cough with dyspnea due to consumptive diseases. Appropriate drugs should
be chosen with regard to the differedt syndromes, could or Heat, Xu or
Shi types, and given in combination with suitable drugs of other categories
(PEC).
Expectorants, Antitussives and Antiasthmatics
Drugs whose principal effects are to remove the stagnation of sputum
are clled expectorants; drugs which can alleviate or relieve cough and
asthma are called antitussives and antiasthmatics. Most expectorants also
have the effects of anittussive and antiasthmatics and visa versa (PEC).
These drugs are further divided into three categories - 1. Resolving Cold
Phlegm 2. Resolving Hot Phlegm 3. Relieving cough and asthma Drugs for
resolving phlegm are mainly used for cough with abundant sputum, dyspnea
due to retention of phlegm, or difficulty in expectoration, and disease,
and diseases induce by phlegm such as epilepsy, convulsion, goiter, scrofula,
deep-rooted carbuncle of Yin nature and metastic abscesses. Drugs for relieving
cough and asthma are chiefly indicated for cough and asthma due to affection
by exopathogenic factors and impairment of the functions of internal organs.
In addition to the drugs for resolving sputum and relieving cough and asthma,
other drugs should be used according to the cause of the disease. -For
cough due to affection by exopathogens, diaphoretics should be used as
well; for cough due to consumptive diseases, tonics should be added; -For
Heat Phlegm syndrome with sticky sputum it is preferable ot use Heat clearing
and Lung moistening drugs too; -For Cold Damp phlegm syndrome, drugs for
drying and warming the Lung to expell pathogenic Cold Dampness should be
added. -For cough with hemoptysis, drastic and irritating sputum resolving
drugs shuld not be used because they might induce or aggravate hemoptysis.
-For cough at the early stage of measles, drugs for removing Heat from
the Lung and promoting the dispersing function of the Lung should be used
as the principal ingredients while antitussive drugs, expecially drugs
with warm and astringent properties for resolving sputum and relieving
cough should not be used so as to avoid any increase of heat or any disadvantage
to the thorough eruption of measles.