A "release the exterior, drain the interior, and clear heat" formula from the Jin dynasty, unusually comprehensive in that it covers exterior, interior, and heat in a single prescription.
Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.
Background & origin
Compiled by the Jin dynasty physician Liu Wansu in "Elucidations of Formulas" (《宣明论方》), representing his "fire-heat theory" school. In Japan, Bofu-tsusho-san (防風通聖散) is one of the most heavily stocked OTC formulas in Japanese pharmacies, used for "stubborn obesity" with a tendency to constipation, facial redness, and irritability, and packaged in "ナイシトール" type products by Kracie, Tsumura, and Kotaro. In Korea it is sold as Bangpung-tongseong-hwan (방풍통성환) by Kyungdong.
From the source text
This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.
From the source text · 《宣明论方》卷三·风门·防风通圣散条
Classical text
据《宣明论方》风门载防风通圣散：治风热壅盛，表里俱实，身热烦躁，头痛昏眩，目赤睛痛，口苦口干，咽喉不利，胸膈痞闷，咳呕喘满，涕唾稠黏，大便燥结，小便短赤，及疮疡肿毒，肠风痔漏，丹斑瘾疹等。防风、荆芥、连翘、麻黄、薄荷、川芎、当归、白芍、白术、栀子、大黄、芒硝、石膏、黄芩、桔梗、甘草、滑石。
Modern Chinese rendering
本方用于"表里俱实、风热壅盛"系列证候：外感风热、内有积滞所致的身热烦躁、头痛昏眩、目赤咽痛、胸膈痞闷、咳喘涕黏、大便燥结、小便短赤、疮疡肿毒、风疹湿疹等"表里三焦俱实"证。方以防风、荆芥、麻黄、薄荷解表散风为君；大黄、芒硝泻下通便、石膏、黄芩、栀子、连翘清解三焦里热为臣；当归、白芍、川芎养血和血、白术健脾、甘草调和为佐；桔梗载药上行、滑石利尿引热下行，一升一降为使。整体上，是刘完素"表里双解"思路下最大的一张复方（17 味），体现其"火热论"对"风热 + 积热"复合证候的系统处理。
Editorial translation
This formula is used for "excess in both exterior and interior with wind-heat congestion" patterns: externally-contracted wind-heat combined with internal accumulation, presenting as fever with vexation, headache and dizziness, red painful eyes, sore throat, chest and diaphragm stuffiness, cough and panting with thick sticky sputum, dry hard stools, scanty dark urine, sores and ulcers, wind-rashes and eczema, "excess in the exterior, interior, and triple-burner" patterns. The formula uses Fáng Fēng, Jīng Jiè, Má Huáng, and Bò Hé to release the exterior and disperse wind as sovereign; Dà Huáng and Máng Xiāo to drain downward and free the stools, and Shí Gāo, Huáng Qín, Zhī Zǐ, and Lián Qiào to clear heat in all three burners of the interior as minister; Dāng Guī, Bái Sháo, and Chuān Xiōng to nourish and harmonize blood, Bái Zhú to fortify the spleen, and Gān Cǎo to harmonize as assistant; Jié Gěng to bear the formula upward and Huá Shí to promote urination and drain heat downward, one ascending and one descending as envoy. It is, in short, the largest single formula (17 ingredients) of Liu Wansu's "release-both-exterior-and-interior" thinking, embodying his "fire-heat theory" systematic handling of the combined "wind-heat + accumulation-heat" pattern.
In tradition
In TCM tradition, used when an external pathogen is felt to coexist with internal accumulation, the patient feels both "surface" symptoms (mild chills, headache) and "interior" symptoms (constipation, dark urine, red eyes, sore throat, red skin lesions, irritability) at the same time. It is one of the most commonly discussed formulas for short-term, "I feel hot, heavy, and constipated" presentations, and a common suggestion for robust adults with a tendency to "internally accumulate".
Formula composition
Monarch1
- Saposhnikovia root (Fáng Fēng / 防风) - the principal exterior-releasing herb
Other ingredients14
- Schizonepeta (Jīng Jiè / 荆芥)
- Ephedra (Má Huáng / 麻黄)
- Rhubarb root (Dà Huáng / 大黄)
- Mirabilitum (Máng Xiāo / 芒硝)
- Gardenia fruit (Zhī Zǐ / 栀子)
- Talcum (Huá Shí / 滑石)
- Scutellaria root (Huáng Qín / 黄芩)
- Platycodon root (Jié Gěng / 桔梗)
- Peucedanum (Qián Hú / 前胡)
- Bitter orange (Zhǐ Shí / 枳实)
- Dong quai (Dāng Guī / 当归)
- White peony root (Bái Sháo / 白芍)
- White atractylodes (Bái Zhú / 白术)
- Licorice root (Gān Cǎo / 甘草)
International availability
Japan (Kampo)
- Tsumura & Co.ツムラOTC防風通聖散Bōfū-tsūshō-san
Korea (Hanbang)
- Kyungdong경동OTC방풍통성산Bangpung-tongseong-san
Taiwan & Hong Kong
- 順天堂OTC防風通聖丸Fang Feng Tong Sheng Wan
Cautions & context
- Contains rhubarb and mirabilitum, it is a laxative formula and can cause significant loose stools.
- Contains ephedra (Má Huáng), a stimulant herb; not appropriate for people with hypertension, heart disease, hyperthyroidism, or anxiety disorders.
- Not appropriate for use during pregnancy, multiple ingredients (rhubarb, mirabilitum, ephedra) are contraindicated.
- Long-term daily use for weight loss is not appropriate; the formula is for short-term "congestion" presentations, not chronic use.
Related formulas
Other formulas from this text· "Elucidations of Formulas"
Other formulas by this contributor· Liu Wansu
Related concerns
Concern · digestion
Digestion
Upper-abdominal heaviness, bloating, sour reflux, loose stools, traveler's stomach, and the aftermath of a meal that was richer, spicier, or larger than usual.
Concern · immune
Immune Support
The everyday language of "wanting to stay well", a sense of being run down, the change of seasons, occasional mouth ulcers, the slow recovery after a cold.
Editorial note
Compiled from "Elucidations of Formulas" (1172).
Last reviewed: July 18, 2026
Three layers of evidence
Classical source
≈ 900 years · "Elucidations of Formulas" (1172)
Pharmacopoeia indication
"Release the exterior and free the interior, clear heat and resolve toxin. Used for external cold with internal heat: headache with dry throat, chills and fever, constipation with dark urine; also used for hives and eczema."
Modern research status
As of 2026-07-18, a PubMed search using the formula name and the Latin / Korean / Japanese transliterations together with "systematic review" and "meta-analysis" did not identify a dedicated systematic review for this formula. Any clinical evidence that does exist is fragmented across small individual trials or covered in broad herbal-medicine umbrella reviews, which do not allow a per-formula evidence assessment; the absence of a dedicated SR is itself the relevant editorial fact here.
References
References reviewed on July 18, 2026 · PubMed search on 2026-07-18
- 01ClassicalLiú Wánsù (刘完素), 《宣明论方》 (Xuān Míng Lùn Fāng / Elucidations of Formulas), late Jin dynasty, compiled ca. 1172, the "wind-diseases" (风门) section, the entry for Fáng Fēng Tōng Shèng Sǎn (防风通圣散) on which the modern Fáng Fēng Tōng Shèng Wán is based, the largest single formula (17 ingredients) in the classical canon covering exterior, interior, and heat in one prescription; editorial adaptation, pending scholarly verification against the 1172 woodblock edition.
- 02TextbookDuān Fùjīn (段富津) et al. (eds.), 《方剂学》 (Fāngjìxué / Science of Formulas), 2nd edition, Shanghai Scientific and Technical Publishers, 2011, the standard modern university-level formula textbook in mainland China, with Fáng Fēng Tōng Shèng Sǎn analysed in the "exterior-releasing formulas" (解表剂) chapter as the representative "release-both-exterior-and-interior" formula, the canonical entry for the "excess in exterior and interior with wind-heat" register.
- 03TextbookKracie (クラシエ), Tsumura (ツムラ), and Kotaro (小太郎), 防風通聖散 (ぼうふうつうしょうさん / Bofu-tsusho-san) product documentation, Japan's leading Kampo manufacturers, the most heavily stocked Japanese Kampo OTC formula for "stubborn obesity" with constipation, facial redness, and irritability, sold in Japanese drugstores in "ナイシトール" type products, derived from the late-Jin 《宣明论方》 line; mirrored in Korean hanbang "방풍통성환" preparations in Kyungdong (경동).
- 04PharmacopoeiaPharmacopoeia Commission of the PRC, 《中华人民共和国药典》 2020 edition, vol. 1 (Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó Yàodiǎn, Pharmacopoeia of the People's Republic of China, 2020 ed., vol. 1), China Medical Science Press, 2020, the official national monograph for Fáng Fēng Tōng Shèng Wán (丸 / 浓缩丸), "functional indication" reads "release the exterior and free the interior, clear heat and resolve toxin, used for external cold with internal heat: headache with dry throat, chills and fever, constipation with dark urine; also used for hives and eczema".