Rheumatoid Arthritis: Symptoms and Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatments

Rheumatoid Arthritis: Symptoms and Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatments

Rheumatoid arthritis is an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and damage to the joints. It is often chronic, causing pain, limited movement, and affecting the quality of life of the patient.

Here are some common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and corresponding traditional Chinese medicine treatments:

1. Symptoms:

• Painful and swollen joints in the feet and hands, pain that moves around, limited movement, aversion to wind and cold, white sticky tongue coating, slippery pulse:

>> Treatment: Quyen Ty Tang

• Swollen, painful, heavy joints in hands and feet, fixed pain, cold to touch, increased pain with cold exposure:

>> Treatment: O Dau Tang (Ephedra, Paeonia Radix Alba, Chuan Xiong, Astragalus, Glycyrrhiza)

• Swollen, hot, red, and painful joints, joint stiffness, heaviness, chest tightness, thirst without wanting to drink, red tongue, yellow greasy tongue coating, rapid strong pulse:

>> Treatment: Bai Ho Gui Chi Tang (Gypsum, Glycyrrhiza, Anemarrhena, Coix, Cinnamomum, Cortex Phellodendri, Atractylodes, Lonicera Japonica, Morus)

• Swollen, hot joints that feel like burning, feeling better with cold, difficulty with flexion and extension, subcutaneous nodules, red face, constipation, red tongue with yellow coating, wiry rapid pulse:

>> Treatment: Te Giac Tan (Musk, Angelica, Coptis, Gardenia, Herba Asperulae, Gypsum)

• Swollen and painful joints, difficulty with flexion and extension, joint deformation, purple tongue with blood stasis points:

>> Treatment: Pi Wei Diao Hua + Er Chen

• Pale complexion, numbness and fatigue in the joints, dizziness and nausea, joint deformation, shortness of breath, pale thin tongue, deep slow weak pulse:

>> Treatment: Gui Zhi Tang + Khung Quy Qi Thược

• Prolonged joint pain + Liver, Kidney Yin deficiency / Yang deficiency:

• Yang Deficiency: Ba Wei Gui Fu

• Yin Deficiency: Liu Wei Ji Cu

Note:

• This information is for reference only. For accurate diagnosis and treatment, patients need to consult a qualified doctor for appropriate examination and advice.

• Traditional Chinese medicine formulas should be used under the guidance of a practitioner. Self-medication is not recommended.

We hope this article has provided you with a better understanding of rheumatoid arthritis and some traditional Chinese medicine treatment approaches.