A report by the author entitled “Kampo formulas containing Coicis Semen that are Effective in the Treatment of Verrucae” was published in Volume 47 Number 1 of the Japanese Journal of Oriental Medicine. In this paper, the author notes the finding of a reference that supplements the above report. In ‘Yojuin Yamawaki Sensei Hokan, ’ written by Yamawaki Toyo the author found the following: “To control verrucae, boil 5 sen of Coicis Semen in 3 go of water. Drink or wash the affected area with 1 go of this use.” (This text was originally written in classical Chinese.) It is clear from this statement that Yamawaki Toyo used Coicis Semen for verrucae in a manner resembling folk medicine. Although the date of compilation of the text is not known, this treatment method had obviously been in use before the death of Yamawaki Toyo (1762).
The description of the use containing Coicis Semen appearing in the above text is more accurate than that found in ‘Yamato Honzo.’
The first description of a formula for Coicis Semen for the treatment of verrucae is found in ‘Meika Hosen, ’ which was edited by Yamada Genrin in his late teens after stealing formulas from various famous doctors. According to various medical texts, the name of Yamada Genrin was Ikyo. In ‘Meika Hosen, ’ which Yamada edited, his name was written using different Chinese characters, but also pronounced ‘Ikyo’, this was probably his original first name. The name ‘Ikyo’ with the characters used later is associated with the text ‘Baiso Yakugen.’

In general, keishikashakuyakuto or shokenchuto is used to treat abdominal pain. We experienced 2 cases that kanbakutaisoto were effective in treating abdominal pain, however keishikashakuyakuto and shokenchuto did not have any favorable effect on these cases. Case 1 : A 17-year-old female who consulted us because of abdominal distension and pain. We treated her with keishikashakuyakuto and shokenchuto, but they had no effect on her. As the abdominal pain was increased by anxiety, we prescribed for kanbakutaisoto to her and her symptoms disappeared after one and half months. Case 2 : A 13-year-old male who visited our clinic complaining of upper abdominal pain. He was treated with shokenchuto, but it had no favorable effect. As we knew that he had some anxiety over his club activities and school life, we changed the prescription to kanbakutaisoto, and he recovered after about 1 month. When keishikashakuyakuto or shokenchuto has no effect against abdominal pain, we posit that kanbakutaisoto is useful for the symptom if the patient has psychological problems.

[Objective] To determine the long-term effect of Kampo medicine on patients with primary open angle glaucoma (POAG).
[Patients] Patient 1 was a 17-year-old male with POAG at his initial visit, having been treated using Kampo for 34 years. Patient 2 was a 56-year-old female, diagnosed with POAG 30 years before visiting our clinic, who had continued Kampo treatment for 19 years. At their first visit, these two patients had a very high risk of becoming blind, but, after long-term treatment using Kampo, their visual function was maintained and their intraocular pressure was well controlled. Patient 3 was a 23-year-old female at her initial visit, who we have been following for 27 years. During this period, her intraocular pressure returned to normal while she was taking Kampo medicine regularly, and conversely elevated when she stopped.
[Discussion] We cannot indicate the specific Kampo prescription which reduces intraocular pressure, but Kampo medicines prescribed according to the usual pattern identifications may be able to improve the intraocular pressure in the presence of POAG. In addition, Kampo medicine may be effective in maintaining the visual function of POAG patients.
[Conclusion] Kampo medicine may reduce intraocular pressure, and be effective as an add-on therapy when combined with standard treatment in patients with POAG.

Jiinshihoto, a Kampo formulation described in the textbook, Wanbinhuichun, is well known as a suitable formulation for patients troubled by chronic cough with qi obstruction. The components of jiinshihoto have several effects including nourishing yin, clearing empty heat, replenishing qi, and improving digestive function. We report three cases with glossodynia and abnormal sensation in the throat which were treated successfully with jiinshihoto. We therefore recommend jiinshihoto for the treatment of glossodynia and abnormal sensation in the throat associated with signs of yin deficiency including thirst, dry mouth, and viscous sputum,and signs of qi obstruction such as a tympanic sound on the right side of the abdomen.

Sleep disturbance is often observed among patients with diabetes and poor sleep is associated with higher HbA 1 c levels. Therefore, treatment of sleep disturbance is important. We experienced two cases in which sansoninto was useful in the treatment of insomnia with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A 58-year-old man had been treated with insulin for 10 years and a 79-yerar-old man had been treated oral hypoglycemic agents for 15 years. We administered sansoninto in each patient, after which sleep disturbance disappeared gradually. These results suggest that sansoninto is useful for sleep disturbance in patients with diabetes.

Purpose : Shakuyakukanzoto (SKT ; peony and licorice decoction) is a Japanese herbal medicine that is useful in the treatment of acute pain.
We investigated the effects of SKT on pain in patients who visited to an outpatient emergency department for painful conditions such as acute gastroenteritis.
Methods : Thirty patients were enrolled. All participants received 2.5 grams of SKT powder. Pain intensity was measured at baseline and 30 minutes after SKT administration using a visual analog scale (VAS). Patients were asked to rate their pain on a scale from 0 to 100 (0, no pain ; 100, excruciating pain).
Results : The overall mean VAS score was 71.03 ± 19.42 at baseline and significantly improved to 34.86 ± 34.89 at 30 minutes after SKT administration (P < 0.01).
Conclusions : SKT was highly effective in managing pain-related emergencies in an outpatient setting. Patients with acute gastroenteritis and tension headache experienced the greatest pain relief.

We report two cases of chest and abdominal symptoms, the causes of which can not be established in a medical sense, successfully treated with daisaikoto. The first case was an 81-year-old male. He complained of tightness in his chest. Since the frequency of his symptom was increasing, he underwent further evaluation in hospital, but no abnormalities were found. We administered daisaikoto with reference to his constipation and kyo-kyo-kuman (subchondrial resistance and discomfort), the tightness in his chest disappeared and three months later his qi stagnation score and SDS score had improved.
The second case was an 83-year-old male. He had been suffering epigastric pain, tightness of chest and abdomen and a feeling of fullness in the abdomen since two years previously, when he suffered multiple traumatic injuries. We administered daisaikoto in light of his epigastric pain, constipation and kyo-kyo-kuman.The epigastric pain and tightness of the chest and abdomen gradually disappeared, and the number of his unscheduled visits to the clinic decreased.
Thus, daisaikoto may be used to treat patients with chest or abdominal symptoms and depression, the cause of which can not be established in any medical sense.

There have been few reports on an antiemetic effect of bakumondoto. An 84 year old man was referred to the department of internal medicine for Kampo treatment of intractable vomiting since having a gastrectomy 6 years previously. He had experienced persistent regurgitation of gastric fluids at dawn and antiemetic and antiacid drugs were of little help. He had had a gastrojejunostomy 4 years previously for an intestinal obstruction. After the gastrojejunostomy, vomiting persisted despite of the administration of antiacids, rikkunshito or daikenchuto. Physical examination revealed only slight edema of the legs. An upper gastrointestinal series, blood tests and head CT scan revealed no specific vomiting cause. After referral to our department, we tried hangeshashinto, and shinbuto in vain. Then we prescribed bakumondoto. He reported that the frequency of his vomiting reduced in 3 weeks, and that the vomiting disappeared in 2 more weeks. Thus we consider that not only cough but also vomiting can be treated with bakumondoto.

We evaluated the effect of hachimijiogan in 30 cases of anticholinergic agent and α-blocker resistant LUTS. International Prostate Symptom Scores (IPSS), QOL scores, Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia Impact Index (BII) scores and urinary 8-OHdG of the patients were statistically much improved. This study demonstrated improvement in urinary symptoms, urinary QOL and oxidative stress, in LUTS resistant to anticholinergic agents and α-blockers. Further long-term studies will be needed not only in urinary symptoms, but also in effect as an anti-aging medicine.

We report a case of systemic sclerosis complicated with primary biliary cirrhosis successfully treated with orengedokuto (wanbinghuichun) and sekiganryo. The patient was a 68-year-old female. She had been diagnosed with systemic sclerosis 20 years previously, and primary biliary cirrhosis 17 years previously. She received modern Western medical treatment for skin itching and scleroderma, but her symptoms showed little improvement. Therefore, she consulted our clinic in order to receive Kampo therapy. We prescribed orengedokuto (wanbinghuichun), and the skin itching improved in 5 days. As a result of administering sekiganryo in addition to orengedokuto (wanbinghuichun) for severe coldness, the scleroderma was also ameliorated. We consider this to be a case of diseases overlapping between yin and yang syndrome.