Qing Dai Tang清带汤
Clear the Discharge Decoction
Ingredients5 herbs
Indications
Discharge from an unsecured Chong and Ren: the lower burner no longer holds, so thin white or blood-tinged discharge continues. The formula addresses the leak itself; where Spleen deficiency, Liver constraint or damp-heat is driving it, that must be treated alongside.
Clinical Manifestations
- Persistent white or blood-streaked discharge
- Chronic discharge in an otherwise stable patient
- Discharge continuing after the underlying pattern is treated
- Light continuous uterine spotting alongside discharge
Health Categories
Modern Applications
Common adjustments
- Spleen deficiency with tiredness and loose stools — combine with Wan Dai Tang 完带汤, or add Bai Zhu 白术 and Ren Shen 人参
- Damp-heat with yellow sticky discharge — add Huang Bai 黄柏 and Che Qian Zi 车前子, or clear first and astringe later
- Discharge blood-streaked — increase Qian Cao 茜草 and add Di Yu 地榆
Contraindications
Not to be used while damp-heat or infection is active — thick yellow-green discharge, a foul odour, itching or burning must be cleared and diagnosed first, since binding traps it. Blood-streaked or new-onset discharge always needs a gynaecological assessment before it is astringed.
For licensed practitioners’ reference only — not a self-treatment guide.
Pregnancy
Not used in pregnancy without specific indication — the mineral astringents and Qian Cao are avoided during pregnancy, and discharge or spotting in pregnancy needs obstetric assessment.
References
Source Yi Xue Zhong Zhong Can Xi Lu 《医学衷中参西录》 · Republic of China (early 20th century)
- 《医学衷中参西录》(Zhang Xi-chun) — original record of the formula; not quoted here, as it falls outside the public domain.
2. Scheid, Bensky, Ellis & Barolet. Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas & Strategies, 2nd ed. — composition cross-checked.
3. 《方剂学》（全国中医药行业高等教育规划教材）— studied alongside the principal discharge formulas of this section.
Professional reference notice. Entries are scholarly references for licensed TCM practitioners and students — not medical advice, and not a recommendation to self-prescribe. Chinese herbal formulas should be used under the guidance of a qualified practitioner. Content is an original editorial compilation by Cura x Cura, cross-checked against the cited references.