Patchouli is one of the top ten southern medicines in China. Its main functions are to dispel heat and dehumidify，prevent stomach vomiting，and aromatize turbidity. Patchouli general forms of treatment by patchouli essential oil and water extract，its main ingredients include flavonoids，terpenoids，alkaloids，and some chemicals，such as alcohols，the major effective components have a wide grandiflorum，sweet alcohol，ketone of patchouli and patchouli ene，etc.have anti-inflammatory analgesic，protect the gastrointestinal tract，antitumor，anti malaria parasites and antioxidant，etc. Patchouli plays an anti-inflammatory role by controlling the content of prostaglandin，malondialdehyde and nitric oxide in serum. To protect the gastrointestinal tract，patchouli oil plays a role in regulating gastrointestinal movement，promoting digestive secretion，and protecting the intestinal barrier. The water extract and volatile oil of patchouli have certain inhibitory effect on Escherichia coli，Staphylococcus aureus and Candida albicans，among which the inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus is obviously stronger than that on enterobacteria. In this paper，the functions of patchouli and its active components are summarized，which will provide theoretical basis for future research and development and promote its application and development in clinical medicine，chemical industry and traditional Chinese medicine.