Nature: salty, cold

Enters: Liver, Heart

Actions: Clears liver heat; subdues liver yang (remarkably); extinguishes liver wind; promotes vision; clears heat and toxicity; clears damp-heat; quiets the Shen.

Indications:
• Liver wind: convulsions, spasms – infant, epilepsy, other seizure disorders, including for recalcitrant fevers, internal wind due to intense heat.
• Liver Yang rising: dizziness, vertigo, headache, blurry vision, red eyes, photophobia, hypertension, spasms, convulsions.
• Liver fire: red eyes, headache.
• Heart blockage by heat and toxicity with liver wind stirring: high fever, unconsciousness, delirium, involuntary limb movement.
• Wind-damp-heat: Bi syndrome.
• Doctrine of signatures: Antelopes and mountain goats live (and thrive) at high altitudes. The herb is useful for Yang that rises, like the peak of a mountain, and also for mountain sickness – increases resistance to a low oxygen environment.
• Less effective than Xi jiao (rhinoceros horn) at clearing heat and toxicity, but more effective at relieving spasms and extinguishing wind. The two horns are used together in severe cases of coma and convulsions due to high fever (however, rhinoceros horn should no longer be used, given rhinos’ endangerment).
• Take directly as powder or pills.
• Ling yang jiao is similar to Gou teng, but while Gou teng enters mainly the Qi level, Ling yang jiao enters the blood level, relives toxicity, and treats heat in the blood
Hsu: Antipyretic, anticonvulsive – tranqulizing, antispasmodic – inhibits CNS.

Dose: 0.9-3g (directly)

 
Shan Yang Jiao: Mountain Goat horn
• For ecological considerations, this herb may be used in place of Ling yang jiao.
• Mountain goat horn is much weaker – use 10 times the dose of antelope horn that would be used.

Dose: 9-60g