Ointment in traditional Chinese medicine appeared very early, as early as in the Shan Hai Jing(, The Classic of Mountains and Seas) has been recorded, Wushier Bing Fang(, Prescriptions for Fifty-two Diseases), unearthed in the Mawangdui Han Tomb, there were many cases of ointment in it.The earliest paste named after "plaster" with complete formulation and application method can be found in Wuwei Han Dynasty Medical Slips.In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Tao Hongjing's Shennong Bencao Jing Jizhu(, Collected Commentaries to the Materia Medica) presented a detailed description of the production process of ointment.The production and use of ointment in Sui and Tang Dynasties were more standardized. And ointment was widely used in Tang Dynasty. The term "yougao" (, grease) appeared in the book Beiji Qianjin Yaofang(, Essential Recipes for Emergent Use Worth A Thousand Gold), and "yaogao" (, unguent) was used earlier in the book Ishimpo(), which was used to refer to ointment.The word "ruangao" (, unguentum) was used earlier in the Yuji Weiyi(), a book from Ming Dynasty, and its connotation is basically the same as that of modern ointment.The term "rugao" (, cream) appeared again in Puji Fang(, Prescriptions for Universal Relief), referring to the ointment having a milk base.The term "ointment" was first recorded in Liangyao Yu Duyao (, Good medicine and Poisons), which published in 1932. Since then, the name "ointment" has been used in all traditional Chinese medical works.
传统中药软膏剂出现很早，早在《山海经》就已有记载，马王堆汉墓出土的《五十二病方》中出现了多例软膏剂。最早以"膏药"命名，并有完整组方及服用方法的膏方，见于《武威汉代医简》。南北朝时期，陶弘景的《本草经集注》对软膏剂的制作过程做了较为详细的说明。隋唐时期软膏剂的制作和使用更为规范，特别是唐代软膏剂在美容方面使用较广。《备急千金要方》出现了"油膏"一词，《医心方》一书中使用了"药膏"，都用来指代软膏剂。明代《玉机微义》使用了"软膏"，内涵与现代软膏剂基本相同。《普济方》又出现了"乳膏"一词，指用乳汁为基质的软膏剂。1932年出版的《良药与毒药》首见"软膏剂"名词的记载。此后的中医学著作均使用"软膏剂"这一名称。.
Keywords: ointment; traditional preparation.