In the classical Oriental medical texts the “Shang Han Lun” and the “Jin Kui Yao Lue”, no clear distinction is made between Atractylodes japonica and Atractylodes lancea. Even today, no sharp critical distinction is made between the usage of these crude drugs in Kampo formulas. The authors have attempted to elucidate the differences in their clinical effect by investigating the way patients reacted when the two crude drugs were interchanged in Kampo formulas the patients were taking.
It was found that Atractylodes lancea was more effective than Atractylodes japonica for patients with arthralgia. Of the effective cases, 60% reported that the formula had a pleasant taste, while 9% reported it tasted bad. This suggested that taste may play a significant role in patient's responses to Kampo formulas.