Shui Niu Jiao - 水牛角 - Cornu Bubali

Pharmaceutical Latin:	Cornu Bubali
Common English:	Water Buffalo Horn

Category

Herbs that Clear Heat and Purge Fire: Herbs that Clear Heat and Cool Blood

Properties

Taste	Temperature	Entering Meridians	Dosage
Salty (Bitter)	Cold	Heart Liver Stomach (San Jiao) (Yin Qiao)	Decoction: 20-120g Powder: 4-20g 30-120g (decoction), 6-15g (powder) (Secondary source)

Actions And Indications

Actions	Indications/Syndromes
Clears Heat from the Ying and Xue stages, Cools the Blood, Relieves Fire toxicity, Stops bleeding	Ying or Xue Stage Heat or Blood Heat with a very high fever and chaotic movement of Blood (erythema, purpura, epistaxis, hematemesis, convulsions and delirium)
Clears Heat and arrests tremors	Warm-Heat pathogen diseases when the Heat enters the Ying or Xue levels with unremitting high fever, loss of consciousness, delirium, convulsions or manic behavior

Contraindications, Incompatibilities And Herb/Drug Interactions

Major Combinations

Cornu Saigae Tataricae Ling Yang Jiao	Rx. Rehmanniae Sheng Di Huang	Rx. Rehmanniae Sheng Di Huang Cx. Moutan Mu Dan Pi Rx. Paeoniae Rubrae Chi Shao Fol. Isatidis Da Qing Ye Rx. Arnebiae/Lithospermi Zi Cao
High fever, delirium and convulsions due to warm febrile diseases.	Loss of consciousness and delirium, with epistaxis, hematemesis, or purpura due to Blood Heat.	Strengthens the Blood cooling action of the previous combination.
Gypsum Fibrosum Shi Gao Rx. Scrophulariae Xuan Shen	Rz. Coptidis Huang Lian Rx. Scrophulariae Xuan Shen
High fever which worsens at night, dark-red skin blotches, thirst and a rapid pulse due to Fire in the Qi and Blood levels.	High fever, loss of consciousness, delirium, hematemesis, epistaxis, and purpura associated with warm febrile disease.

Notes

1. In recent times it has often been used for cardiovascular diseases, strokes and cancer.
2. It serves as a cheaper substitute for Xi Jiao, but because its actions are weaker, a larger dose is needed.
3. It is commonly used for acute throat infections with severe pain.
4. It is especially effective at clearing Heat from the Heart channel and resolving toxins.
5. It is useful for Yang jaundice or toxic rashes, and it stops bleeding caused by Heat in the Blood.
6. It works well for encephalitis B, high fever in infants and children, and thrombocytic purpura.
7. Shui Niu Jiao and Cornu Saigae Tataricae (Antelopis) Ling Yang Jiao are both salty and cold. Because Shui Niu Jiao is also bitter, it is better at clearing the Heart and stopping bleeding, whereas Ling Yang Jiao is better at clearing the Liver (Liver Wind). Shui Niu Jiao cools the Blood and resolves toxic rashes, while Ling Yang Jiao treats red eyes and superficial visual obstruction.
8. Shui Niu Jiao and Carapax Eretmochelydis Dai Mao both enter the Heart and Liver channels, cool Heat, resolve toxicity, sedate convulsions and relieve spasms. Dai Mao is sweet, salty and cold, and is stronger at extinguishing Wind and sedating the Liver and convulsions. Shui Niu Jiao is bitter and mainly cools Heat at the Blood level, clearing Heart Heat, cooling the Blood and dispersing Stagnation.
9. Rhinoceros Horn, Xi Jiao, is the original substance recorded in the Chinese materia medica. Since it is on the endangered species list, it should no longer be used.
10. Xi Jiao (Rhinocerotis Cornu), the substance it replaces, is bitter, salty and cold, enters the Heart, Liver and Stomach, and was dosed at 1.5-6g. Rhinoceros is an endangered species listed in CITES Appendix I.