San Leng (三棱) — Bur-Reed Tuber: TCM Uses, Masses & Formulas

At a Glance

Herb: San Leng
Chinese name: 三棱 (Sān Léng)
Latin name: Sparganium stoloniferum rhizome
Nature: Neutral
Taste: Acrid / Bitter
Meridian: Liver / Spleen
Category: Herbs that Invigorate Blood and Resolve Stasis
Introduction: San Leng (三棱), the dried tuber of Sparganium stoloniferum (Graebn.) Buch.-Ham. ex Juz. (common bur-reed), is one of the most powerful blood-stasis-breaking herbs in the Chinese materia medica. Recorded since the Tang dynasty, it is almost invariably paired with E Zhu (莪术) — San Leng excels at breaking blood stasis while E Zhu excels at moving qi stagnation — and together they form the definitive pair for hard, fixed abdominal masses, tumors, liver fibrosis, and severe gynecological stasis. Modern pharmacology has confirmed steroidal saponins, flavonoids, and phenylpropanoids with anticoagulant, anti-platelet, antifibrotic, and antitumor activities.

Breaks blood stasis — the strongest herb for dispersing hard, fixed masses from blood stasis
Moves qi and relieves pain — addresses qi stagnation underlying blood stasis accumulations
Dissolves food accumulations — treats chronic food stagnation with mass formation
Anti-fibrotic (modern application) — inhibits hepatic stellate cell activation in liver fibrosis

Standard dose: 3–9 g
Strictly contraindicated in pregnancy — strongly breaks blood and will cause miscarriage
Use with caution in blood deficiency without stasis — injures blood with prolonged use
Not for long-term use without concurrent tonifying herbs to protect qi and blood
Distinguished from E Zhu: San Leng is neutral and stronger for blood stasis; E Zhu is warm and stronger for qi stagnation — always combine for best effect

San Leng + E Zhu core pair: used as the foundation for virtually all formulas treating abdominal masses and severe blood stasis; ratio adjusted per presentation
Ge Xia Zhu Yu Tang (膈下逐瘀汤): San Leng, E Zhu, Dang Gui, Tao Ren, Hong Hua, Chi Shao, Wu Ling Zhi, Zhi Ke — for blood stasis masses below the diaphragm
Combined with Bie Jia, Gui Ban, Mu Li for liver fibrosis and cirrhosis with splenomegaly
Combined with Bai Hua She She Cao, Ban Zhi Lian for cancer support

莪术 (É Zhú) — classic pair: powerfully breaks blood stasis and disperses masses; 癥瘕积聚, liver fibrosis, ovarian cysts (三棱破血力强，莪术破气力强). 2. 鳖甲 (Biē Jiǎ) + 丹参 (Dān Shēn) — hepatosplenomegaly and liver fibrosis. 3. 香附 (Xiāng Fù) + 当归 (Dāng Guī) — amenorrhea and dysmenorrhea from stasis. 4. 枳实 (Zhǐ Shí) + 厚朴 (Hòu Pò) — severe food and qi stagnation with stasis. Source: 本草纲目, 本草经疏.

Anticoagulant
- inhibits ADP and collagen-induced platelet aggregation
- prolongs prothrombin time
ferulic acid
- Anti-fibrotic: reduces TGF-β1 signaling
- Anti-fibrotic: inhibits hepatic stellate cell activation
p-coumaric acid and polysaccharides
- Antitumor: induce apoptosis in hepatoma and colon cancer lines
central opioid pathway modulation
- Analgesic: reduces writhing responses in acetic acid tests
Uterine stimulant
- stimulates smooth muscle contraction — contraindicated in pregnancy
Digestive
- promotes gastric emptying and intestinal motility

Ben Cao Gang Mu (《本草纲目》): ‘Sparganium Tuber can break qi and disperse binding, treats all blood and qi stagnation, accumulation and gathering, concretions and conglomerations, and hard swollen sores.’
Ben Cao Jing Shu (《本草经疏》): ‘Sparganium Tuber, when used with blood medicinals it treats blood; when used with qi medicinals it treats qi — its function is quite similar to Zedoary Rhizome (莪术), but Zedoary is acrid and intense, breaking blood within qi; Sparganium Tuber is bitter and balanced, breaking qi within blood.’
Kai Bao Ben Cao (《开宝本草》): ‘Governs chronic accumulation with concretions and conglomerations and lumps, postpartum lochia with blood binding, promotes menstruation, induces abortion, stops pain and moves qi.’