Kusnezoff monkshood root (CAO WU)-Aconitum kusnezoffii

Kusnezoff monkshood root (CAO WU)

Aconitum kusnezoffii Reichb. (Fam. Rununculaceae)

Pharmaceutical Name:

Radix Aconiti Kusnezoffii

Botanical Name:

Aconitum kusnezoffii Reichb. (Fam. Rununculaceae)

Common Name:

Kusnezoff monkshood root

Part Used:

Dried root tuber

RadixAconiti Kuznezoffii is produced chiefly in Sichuan, Hubei, and Hunan provinces. The plant is collected in summer. After the hairy rootlets and soils are removed, the tuber is thinly sliced, soaked in water, boiled with ginger, and dried.

Properties  Taste & Meridians:

Pungent and bitter in flavor, warm in property, very poisonous, acts on the Heart, Liver, and Spleen channels.

Functions:

Removes Pathogenic Wind Dampness, expels Pathogenic Cold, and relieves pain.

Indications & Combinations:

For joint pain in rheumatic or rheumatoid arthritis due to Pathogenic Cold and Dampness, and for epigastric pain with cold sensations due to Cold. In fact, it is similar to Radix Aconiti Lateralis Preparata in flavor, properties, and clinical use, except that it is less effective in supplementing Yang but more effective in dispelling Wind. It is also used as an analgesic.

Dosage and administration:

1.5–3 g, decocted in water for an oral dose; 0.5–1 g, if used in powder.

Precautions:

1. More toxic than Radix Aconiti and Radix Aconiti Lateralis Preparata. Must be decocted in water 60 minutes before the other herbs.

2. Contraindicated for use during pregnancy.

3. It is incompatible with Rhizoma Pinelliae (Ban Xia), Fructus Trichosanthis (Gua Lou), Bulbus Fritillariae Cirrhosae (Chuan Bei Mu), and Rhizoma Bletillae Striatae (Bai Ji).

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