Formula Modification for Hyperthyroidism
- Relatively rapid relief of symptoms, within the first 30 to 90 days of treatment, is observed in most patients consuming Chinese herb formulas. While essentially complete remission is indicated in just under half of the patients, alleviation of the majority of symptoms occurs in most of the remaining patients. In order to obtain such high rates of symptom relief, basic herb formulas may be modified by adding one or more ingredients to address specific symptoms or symptom complexes. Below are some examples obtained from examination of the literature. If an ingredient to be added is already present in the base formula, then the dosage may be increased. Not all items in any list of additions need be included. When two symptoms occur together, one or more of the ingredients indicated for each of the symptoms may be added to the base formula.
Symptoms
- Exophthalmos: celosia seed, chrysanthemum, and plantago; or vitex, leonurus fruit, and cassia; or prunella, dandelion, chrysanthemum, lycium fruit, celosia, and tribulus; or magnetite, lycium fruit, lycium bark, and tribulus
- Heart Palpitations and Insomnia: polygonum stem, hematite, zizyphus, mother of pearl
- Palpitations Alone: dragon teeth, succinum, and polygala
- Tachycardia: zizyphus and dragon bone or dragon teeth; may also add Sophora
- Insomnia Only: dragon teeth and oyster shell or zizyphus, albizzia flower, and campsis
- Goiter: cremastra and oyster shell or add fritillaria, prunella, and huangyaozi
- Persistent Goiter: smilax, pleione, oyster shell, fritillaria, turtle shell, sparganium, and anteater scale
- Sore Throat, Fever: lily, lonicera, polygonum (yuzhu), rehmannia, raw, and scrophularia
- Thirst: gypsum, anemarrhena, and trichosanthes root (remove pinellia if present)
- Liver Swelling, Jaundice: curcuma, salvia, turtle shell, capillaris, alisma, gardenia, polyporus
- Depression: bupleurum, peony, and uncaria; or bupleurum, curcuma, and fushou
- Excessive Appetite: gypsum and Anemarrhena
- Hand Tremor: antelope horn, tang-kuei, chaenomeles, and scorpion.
Syndromes
- Liver Fire: gentiana, prunella, and uncaria or gentiana and rehmannia, raw, or gentiana and gardenia
- Qi Deficiency: codonopsis, astragalus, Atractylodes
- Qi/Yin Deficiency: astragalus and pseudostellaria
- Qi/Blood Deficiency: codonopsis, atractylodes, polygonatum, dioscorea, astragalus, millettia, and lycium
- Qi Stagnation: cyperus, chih-ko, and curcuma
- Qi Stagnation with Excess Phlegm: clam shell and prunella
- Spleen Deficiency: codonopsis, dioscorea, and alisma, remove yin tonics
- Phlegm Excess: arisaema and perilla stem, or fritillaria and citrus
- Liver/Kidney Yin Deficiency: anemarrhena and phellodendron
- Yin Deficiency, With Fire: rehmannia, raw, adenophora, ophiopogon, and turtle shell
- Blood Stasis: zedoaria and sparganium, or peony, salvia, and persica
- Heart Fire: coptis
Accompanying Diseases
- Diabetes: trichosanthes root, anemarrhena, gypsum, pueraria, raw rehmannia, and Dioscorea
- Sjogren’s Syndrome: ophiopogon, adenophora, trichosanthes root, linum, gelatin
Dr. Zelin Chen points out that for exophthalmos, a treatment superior to using the eye-benefiting herbs mentioned above would be to remove dampness and phlegm that congests the eyes, using Hoelen Five Herb Formula minus cinnamon twig or Hoelen and Areca Combination.40 In a clinical report, the physicians commented that immunosuppresive agents were always necessary in the treatment of cases involving exophthalmos.2
