Experience with Chikujountanto (Untanto) for Trauma- and Stressor- Related Disorders / 日本東洋医学雑誌

I report five cases in which chikujountanto and untanto were effective for trauma and stressor-related disorders. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and acute stress disorder (ASD) are both psychiatric disorders that occur as a reaction to severe stress, and are distinguished by the duration of the disorder. Chikujountanto is indicated for those who have cough and insomnia after late yang stage pattern in case of cold, and for chronic diseases such as depression and sleep disorders, and is applied to various psychiatric disorders. In this paper, I cite the grounds for applying chikujountanto to PTSD from the classics, examine the similarities and differences with other Kampo medicines reported to be used for PTSD from the characteristics of the constituent crude drug centered on Huang lian. I also infer the relationship between the therapeutic mechanism of Kampo and neuroinflammation. Regardless of the severity of the trauma, rapid administration of this drug is expected to hasten the healing process.

Psychiatric Symptoms after Infection Treated with Kampo Medicine, Mainly Chikujountanto / 日本東洋医学雑誌

I report two cases in which chikujountanto was effective for psychiatric symptoms after acute infection. Case 1 was a patient with depression after the common cold, which did not respond to the standard treatment with Western medicines using antidepressants, and was cured by honchiho with Kampo medicine. Case 2 was a patient with delirium after influenza, and kinds of untanto were highly effective. There is a neuroinflammatory hypothesis in the etiology of depression, and there are reports examining the clinical application of NSAIDS for neural inflammation, but the development of new pharmacotherapeutic drugs for targeting neuroinflammation has just only begun. On the other hand, it was found that the constituent crude drugs of Kampo medicine have anti-inflammatory effects, which is considered to be one of the factors leading to a cure. It was suggested that chikujountanto might be one of the differential prescriptions for psychiatric symptoms after suffering from the new coronavirus infection (COVID-19).