Mr. Yan, male, 56 years old, farmer, visited in February 1981. He reported that after the summer harvest last year, he watered the fields barefoot at night and began to feel pain in his lower limbs, especially in both knees. After multiple treatments, he was diagnosed with "arthritis." Although the pain lessened with treatment, it would recur and worsen whenever he stopped taking medication, especially on cloudy or rainy days, making walking difficult and affecting his mobility. In the past month, both lower limbs have felt cold.
Upon examination, his Xiguan (LR7) joints were neither red nor swollen, and his lower limbs felt cold to the touch. The tongue coating was white and greasy, and the pulse manifestation was deep and slow. The syndrome was attributed to wind-dampness invasion, with multiple abscesses in the joints, and both wind and dampness being severe. The treatment should focus on warming yang to transform qi, dispelling wind, and removing dampness. Prescription:
Prepared Aconite Lateral Root 15g, Cinnamon Twig 10g, Prepared Liquorice Root 10g, White Atractylodes Rhizome 10g, Achyranthes Root 10g
Three days later, during a follow-up visit, the pain had significantly improved, and the lower limbs felt slightly warmer. The pulse and tongue condition remained the same. The prescription was continued for another 3 doses.
One week later, during the third visit, he reported a warm sensation in his lower limbs and no longer felt pain in the joints. The original prescription was given for another 5 doses, with instructions to take one dose every other day to consolidate the effect. A follow-up in June of the same year revealed no recurrence.