Wiseman’s Chinese Medical Database

wú gōng / 蜈蚣 / 蜈蚣 / centipede

Latin pharmacognostic name: Scolopendra

Alternate English names:

Alternate Chinese names: 千足 qiān zú

Origin: Plant

Use: medicinal

Category: Liver-calming wind-extinguishing agents / Wind-extinguishing tetany-relieving agents

Properties: Acrid; warm; toxic.

Channel entry: liver channel.

Indications:

• Extinguishes wind and checks tetany: Chronic and acute fright wind; lockjaw; wind-strike; epilepsy.
• Attacks toxin and disperses binds: Toxin swelling of welling-abscesses and sores; scrofula.
• Frees the network vessels and relieves pain: Enduring wind-damp impediment with hypertonicity of the sinews.
• Additional uses: Finally, wú gōng may be used to treat stubborn cases of medial headache (regular headache) or hemilateral headache (migraine).
• For this, it is often combined with quán xiē (全蝎 Scorpio , scorpion).

Dosage & Method:

Oral: 1–3g in decoctions. When swallowed as a powder, each dose should be 0.6–1.0g.

Warning:

Wú gōng is toxic and should not be taken in excessive quantities. It is contraindicated in pregnancy.

Quality:

Long centipedes with undamaged red heads, reddish-brown legs, and black bodies are the best.

Product Area:

Sìchuān, Húběi, Zhèjiāng.