Plasters in ointments and topical ointments were used very early in China. There has been a record of "dredging it and applying ointment" in the "carbuncle chapter" of Huangdi Neijing (Su Wen). Hua Tuo, a famous doctor in Han Dynasty, often used "Shengao" to promote wound healing after surgery. Ge Hong of the Jin Dynasty recorded in "Elbow Backup Emergency Prescription" that the paste was refined with cassava fat, sheep fat and other medicinal materials. At the same time, Gong Qinggai's "Liu Gui Fang" and Qi Zhucheng's "Chu Yu Shu" have made important progress in the use of drugs in dermatology, among which there are many records of "thin paste", and animal fat with good skin absorption has been widely used as ointment base. There is "Wuma ointment" in Sun Simiao's Thousand Women's Wings in the Tang Dynasty, which consists of raw aconite, sesame oil, Huang Dan and wax. The production method is "put it in a bronze vessel with oil and fry it with low fire until the oil is reduced by one point the next day, and then disappear in Huang Dan;" Wax is added to make the foam disappear into paste ... "It can be seen that there was a method for preparing plaster at that time. In the Song Dynasty, Taiping Huimin Heji Bureau Prescription written by Chen and published by the court in the Song Dynasty perfected Chinese patent medicines such as pills, powders, ointments and pills. External ointment developed more in Ming and Qing Dynasties. Compendium of Materia Medica compiled by Li Shizhen, a great pharmacologist, contains more than 40 dosage forms, among which there are many kinds of ointments. Wu Shiji's Li Long Parallel Prose in Qing Dynasty is a monograph on plaster, which comprehensively summarizes the prescription and application of plaster, especially the preparation technology, and has been further developed and improved. For example, the types of plasters not only use grease and lead, but also create white plasters, sticky plasters and rosin plasters.

External ointment was used very early not only in China, but also abroad. Especially in modern times, the matrix, preparation method and adhesive plaster of ointment have developed rapidly.

Plaster is an external preparation made of edible vegetable oil, Huang Dan or lead powder. As a matrix, and contains drugs or Chinese herbal medicine extracts.

Plaster is a traditional dosage form of Chinese preparations. As early as the Jin Dynasty, it was recorded in Ge Hong's Elbow Emergency Prescription that it was made of oil and Dan. There are also many records about "thin towel" in Liu's Ghost Legacy, in which "thin" refers to ointment and "ointment" refers to plaster. Since the Tang and Song Dynasties, plasters have been widely used. Wu Shiji's Essays on Li Long in Qing Dynasty is a monograph on the application of plaster. At present, plaster is still widely used in clinical and folk medicine.

Plaster is often used for external treatment such as detumescence, detoxification and granulation. However, through external application, it can also play the role of internal treatment, such as dispelling cold, harmonizing qi and blood, resolving phlegm and reducing swelling, dredging meridians, treating rheumatism, treating traumatic injury and so on. When talking about the function of plaster, Li Zhuo Pian Wen said, "Break" and "Pull", saying, "Where diseases gather, pulling will lead to the disease itself, without deep invagination; In addition to illness, if it is broken, it will be evil and self-destructive, and there is no danger of passing on the family. "

There are many kinds of plasters, among which black plasters are based on oil and Huang Dan. A white plaster based on oil and palace powder; Rosin gypsum is based on rosin. The most commonly used is black plaster.