Chinese Herbalism
Bur-reed rhizome
Sparganium stoloniferum
Also known as burr reed, common bur-reed, sparganium, bulrush rhizome (trade name), san leng, sān léng, jīng sān léng, hēi sān léng.
Sparganium stoloniferum is a marsh plant of ponds and slow rivers across China, Japan, Korea, and Central Asia, with strap-like leaves and burr-like fruiting heads. The peeled, dried rhizome is san leng, one of the strongest blood-moving drugs in the Chinese materia medica. Almost always paired with curcuma rhizome (e zhu), it is the backbone of formulas for firm abdominal and pelvic masses and belongs in the hands of practitioners comfortable with drastic blood-regulating herbs.
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Indications what the tradition reached for it in
- Amenorrhea from blood stasis with a dark complexion and fixed lower abdominal pain
- Dysmenorrhea with dark clotted flow and pain that eases once clots pass
- Uterine fibroids and other firm pelvic masses (as part of a formula)
- Abdominal masses with fixed pain, including enlarged liver or spleen
- Postpartum retained lochia with abdominal pain
- Endometriosis and chronic pelvic pain with stasis signs (modern use)
- Food stagnation with epigastric fullness, distension, and pain that resists milder herbs
- Chest and flank pain from long-standing qi and blood stagnation
- Traumatic injury with bruising and fixed pain
Specific indications
A palpable, fixed, firm lower abdominal mass with dark clotted menses and stabbing pain, in a patient robust enough to tolerate strong blood-moving herbs
Chronic epigastric distension and pain from accumulated food and stasis where ordinary digestives have failed and the tongue is dusky with dark spots
Amenorrhea of many months with a purple tongue and a dull dark complexion, not from deficiency
Safety
The record lists 9 contraindications; open the plate in the library to read them in full.
In practice
San leng is for stasis that has hardened into something you can feel: fibroids, a bulky uterus, a liver edge, an old fixed mass. It is too forceful for simple period pain or mild stagnation, where safflower, motherwort, or peach kernel will do.
In Chinese medicine
Temperature: neutral. Taste: acrid, bitter. Channels: Liver, Spleen. Actions: Breaks up blood stasis and disperses masses; Moves qi to relieve distension and fixed pain; Dissolves food accumulation and long-standing stagnation; Promotes the flow of menses when stasis blocks them.
Dosing as the sources wrote it
| Preparation | As written | Metric |
|---|---|---|
| Decoction (raw or vinegar-processed rhizome) | 5-10 g dried rhizome daily in decoction | 5000-10000 mg |
| Powder in pills | 1-3 g dried rhizome powder twice daily | 1000-3000 mg |
Doses are reproduced from the sources for practitioners and are not a recommendation for any person.
From the sources
Overview. Sparganium stoloniferum is a marsh plant of ponds and slow rivers across China, Japan, Korea, and Central Asia, with strap-like leaves and burr-like fruiting heads. The peeled, dried rhizome is san leng, one of the strongest blood-moving drugs in the Chinese materia medica. Almost always paired with curcuma rhizome (e zhu), it is the backbone of formulas for firm abdominal and pelvic masses and belongs in the hands of practitioners comfortable with drastic blood-regulating herbs.
Clinical Notes. San leng is for stasis that has hardened into something you can feel: fibroids, a bulky uterus, a liver edge, an old fixed mass. It is too forceful for simple period pain or mild stagnation, where safflower, motherwort, or peach kernel will do.
Chinese Medicine Profile. Temperature: neutral. Taste: acrid, bitter. Channels: Liver, Spleen. Actions: Breaks up blood stasis and disperses masses; Moves qi to relieve distension and fixed pain; Dissolves food accumulation and long-standing stagnation; Promotes the flow of menses when stasis blocks them.
In formulas
Bur-reed rhizome stands in 10 documented formulas in the library, among them shi quán yù zhen tàng, sàn zhong kùi jiàn tǎng, dà hung thè chóng wán.
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Bushy GerardiaGerardiaThe whole plate is in the library. The compass, Compare, the Sky of eleven hundred plants and the formulary open with an email address and a password, free, with the formula builder and its safety engine. Herbert without limit, his formulating, clients, the handouts and the labels are the paid room.
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