A small, focused "wen-shen suo-niao" (warm the kidney and reduce urine) formula from the Song-dynasty "Wei's Family Formulary", the most prescribed classical OTC formula for frequent urination and childhood enuresis in East Asia.
Cultural reference - how this formula has been discussed in Chinese medical tradition. Not medical advice.
Background & origin
Compiled in the Song-dynasty "Wei's Family Formulary" (《魏氏家藏方》, 1227) by Wei Zhi-Nian, it is one of the most compact classical prescriptions in the canon, only three ingredients. Its compactness and the obvious "frequent urination" indication have made it a long-standing OTC staple for childhood enuresis and adult "kidney-qi deficiency" urinary frequency. In Japan, 縮泉丸 (しゅくせんがん / Shukusen-gan) is sold by Kracie (クラシエ) as the standard OTC formula. In Korea, it is sold as 축천환 (Chukcheon-hwan) by Kyungdong (경동). The formula is, in short, the most distilled classical "warm-kidney-and-reduce-urine" formula.
From the source text
This page is cultural documentation, not medical advice.
From the source text · 《魏氏家藏方》卷六·缩泉丸条
Classical text
据《魏氏家藏方》：缩泉丸，治小便频数；益智仁、乌药、山药，研末为丸。
Modern Chinese rendering
本方用于"肾气不固、膀胱失约"系列证候：下元虚冷、肾气不足所致的小便频数、夜尿频多、小儿遗尿、偶有失禁、腰膝酸冷、舌淡苔白。方以益智仁温肾固涩、缩尿止遗为君；乌药温肾散寒、行气止痛以"助膀胱气化"为臣；山药（莲肉）补脾益肾、固涩下元为佐使。三药合用，"温肾 + 行气 + 固涩"，共奏温肾缩尿、固脬止遗之效。整体上，是宋代"三味药成方"的极简"温肾缩尿"代表方，临床用于"下元虚冷、小便频数"证候。
Editorial translation
This formula is used for "kidney-qi instability with bladder failure of restraint" patterns: deficiency-cold of the lower origin and kidney-qi insufficiency causing frequent urination, nocturia, childhood enuresis, occasional incontinence, soreness and cold of the lower back and knees, and a pale tongue with thin white coating. The Suō Quán Wán uses Yì Zhì Rén to warm the kidney, astringe, and reduce urine as sovereign; Wū Yào warms the kidney, disperses cold, moves qi, and "assists the bladder qi transformation" as minister; Shān Yào (Lián Ròu) tonifies spleen, boosts kidney, and astringes the lower origin as assistant-envoy. The three herbs together—warming kidney + moving qi + astringing—accomplish warming-kidney-urine-reduction and consolidating-bladder-stop-enuresis. It is, in short, the Song-dynasty representative formula of the "minimal three-ingredient warm-kidney-urine-reduction" pattern of the "lower-origin deficiency-cold with frequent urination" register.
In tradition
In TCM framing, traditionally used in the context of "kidney-qi deficiency with bladder instability", frequent urination, nocturia (getting up multiple times at night), occasional urinary incontinence, childhood enuresis, and a pale tongue with a thin white coating. The formula is a "warming + astringent" kidney-bladder prescription, and is one of the most prescribed classical OTC formulas for "frequent urination" presentations in both adults and children. In Japan, 縮泉丸 (Shukusen-gan) is sold by Kracie (クラシエ) as the standard OTC "stream-reducing" formula; in Korea it is sold as 축천환 (Chukcheon-hwan) by Kyungdong (경동).
Formula composition
Monarch1
- Alpinia fruit (Yì Zhì Rén / 益智仁) — warms the kidney, reduces urine
Minister1
- Lindera root (Wū Yào / 乌药) — warms the kidney, regulates qi, stabilizes the bladder
Assistant1
- Lotus seed (Lián Ròu / 莲肉) — strengthens the spleen, stabilizes the kidney
International availability
Japan (Kampo)
- Tsumura & Co.ツムラOTC縮泉丸Shukusen-gan
Korea (Hanbang)
- Kyungdong경동OTC축천환Chukcheon-hwan
Taiwan & Hong Kong
- 順天堂OTC縮泉丸Suo Quan Wan
Cautions & context
- A "warming + astringent" formula, long-term daily use is considered inappropriate in TCM framing without supervision.
- Not appropriate for "damp-heat in the bladder" presentations (dark, burning, scanty urine with a yellow tongue coating), the formula is warming and astringent and may worsen such patterns.
- People with what TCM describes as "yin deficiency with fire" (night sweats, dry mouth, heat in the palms) are typically steered toward other formulas.
- Sudden, severe, or rapidly progressing urinary symptoms (blood in urine, severe burning, very high frequency) should be evaluated by a clinician, these are not within the scope of self-treatment.
Related formulas
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.
Editorial note
Compiled from "Wei Family's Household Formulary" (1227).
Last reviewed: July 18, 2026
Three layers of evidence
Classical source
≈ 800 years · "Wei Family's Household Formulary" (1227)
Pharmacopoeia indication
"Tonify the kidney and reduce urination. Used for kidney deficiency with frequent urination and nocturnal enuresis."
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
- 01ClassicalWáng Qiúyuán (王璆原), 《魏氏家藏方》 (Wèi Shì Jiā Cáng Fāng / Wei Family's Household Formulary), Song dynasty, compiled 1227 (Baoqing 3rd year), volume 6, the entry for Suō Quán Wán (缩泉丸), a minimal three-ingredient "warm-kidney + astringent-urine" formula of the Song "frequent urination" register; editorial adaptation, pending scholarly verification of exact chapter / verse wording against the 1227 first-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 Suō Quán Wán analysed in the "tonifying formulas" (补益剂) chapter as a representative "warm-kidney + reduce-urine" formula and the canonical entry for the "lower-origin deficiency-cold with frequent urination" register.
- 03TextbookBensky, D., Clavey, S., Stöger, E., Chinese Herbal Medicine: Materia Medica and Chinese Herbal Medicine: Formulas & Strategies, 3rd edition, Eastland Press, 2004, the standard English-language reference for Chinese herbal formulas, the standard Western reference for Suō Quán Wán as a minimal "warm-kidney + astringent" formula; mirrored in Japanese Kampo as 縮泉丸 (Shukusen-gan, しゅくせんがん) sold by Kracie (クラシエ) for "frequent urination" presentations, and in Korean hanbang as 축천환 (Chukcheon-hwan) in Kyungdong (경동) product line.
- 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 Suō Quán Wán (丸 / 浓缩丸), "functional indication" reads "tonify the kidney and reduce urination, used for kidney deficiency with frequent urination and nocturnal enuresis".