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Latin pharmacognostic name: Clematidis Radix

Alternate English names: Chinese clematis [root]

Alternate Chinese names: 葳灵仙 wēi líng xiān; 葳苓仙 wēi líng xiān; 铁脚威灵仙 tiě jiǎo wēi líng xiān; 黑脚威灵仙 hēi jiǎo wēi líng xiān; 铁脚灵仙 tiě jiǎo líng xiān; 铁灵仙 tiě líng xiān; 灵仙藤 líng xiān téng

Kingdom: Plant

Origin in PRC Pharmacopoeia: Clematis chinensis Osbeck; Clematis manshurica Rupr.; Clematis hexapetala Pall. (PRC Pharmacopoeia)

Origin (other sources): Clematis chinensis Osbeck*; Clematis hexapetala Pall.*; Clematis armandi Franch.; Clematis uncinata Champ. ex Benth.; Clematis meyeniana Walp.; Clematis henryi Oliv.; Clematis finetiana Lévl. et Vant.; Clematis manshurica Rupr.*; Clematis paniculata Thunb.; Smilax scobinicaulis C.H. Wright; Smilax stans Maxim.; Smilax sieboldi Miq.; Smilax sieboldi Miq.; Veronicastrum sibiricum (L.) Pennell; Inula nervosa Wall.

Use: Medicinal

Category: Wind-damp–dispelling agents / Wind-cold-damp–dispelling agents

Properties: Acrid, salty; warm.

Channel entry: Bladder channel.

Indications:

• Dispels wind-damp and frees the channels and network vessels: Wind-damp impediment pain.
• Disperses bones stuck in the throat: Bones stuck in the throat.
• Additional uses: Wēi líng xiān disperses phlegm and expels rheum. Thus, it may be used to treat dysphagia-occlusion (a disease characterized by a sensation of blockage on swallowing, difficulty swallowing food, and in severe cases immediate vomiting of ingested food) or glomus and accumulations.

Dosage & Method: Oral: 5–15g in decoctions. For bones stuck in the throat, the dose range is 30–50g.

Warnings: Wēi líng xiān is mobile and penetrating in nature and wears right qì with prolonged use. Thus, it should be used with care in qì and blood vacuity. While not traditionally labeled as toxic, in excessive quantities it can cause pain in the stomach with vomiting, as well as skin reactions.

Product Description: This product is composed of numerous roots springing from a transversely growing root tuber. The roots are slightly contorted and cylindrical, 10–20 cm long and 1–2 mm thick. They are dark brown in color and bear fine longitudinal wrinkles. They are dark brown in color and snap easily to reveal the yellow wood. They have a slightly fetid smell. The tuber is cylindrical, 1.5–3.5 cm in length, and 2.5 cm thick, its skin often peeling away to reveal a fibrous interior. At the top end are the remains of a woody stem. The decocting pieces are fine transverse slices.

Quality: Superior quality roots are clean, long, firm, and dark in color. They should be attached to a tuber, but the tuber is best if there is no remains of the stem.

Product Area: Jiāngsū, ānhuī.

Etymology: The name wēi líng xiāng 威灵仙, literally awesome spirit immortal, reflects the efficacy of this medicinal.

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