Comprehensive Compendium of Chinese Materia Medica

Comprehensive Compendium of Chinese Materia Medica is a large reference work on Chinese materia medica edited by the specialist Cui Shude and published by Heilongjiang Science and Technology Press in 1997. The book combines the practical experience of traditional medicine with the experimental results of modern science and technology, covering the main knowledge systems of Chinese materia medica. The general section begins with a brief history of Chinese medicine and its basic theories, explains the botanical and zoological origins of medicinal substances, their producing regions, collection, naming, and methods for distinguishing genuine from fake and superior from inferior, and discusses processing, functions and indications, clinical application, compatibility and dosage, the dispensing of decoction pieces, and decoction procedures. It further introduces the chemical constituents and pharmacological experiments of Chinese medicines, dosage forms and the preparation of Chinese patent medicines, rational drug use in pattern-based diagnosis and treatment, the varieties and regulatory management of toxic and potent medicines, the storage and maintenance of crude drugs and patent medicines, and practical knowledge such as medicinal-property mnemonics and the arrangement of medicine drawers. The book includes more than a thousand crude drugs, over five hundred Chinese patent medicines, and a thousand commonly used formulas, with standardized writing and abundant illustrations. A hardcover volume of more than twelve hundred pages, it serves as a reference for Chinese medicine factories, pharmacies, hospital dispensaries, teachers and students at medical colleges, and practitioners of Chinese medicine, and can also serve general readers as a popular guide to indications, usage, and dosage by symptom.