bubble_chart Concept

Foot tremor refers to the trembling or shaking of one or both feet, belonging to the category of tremor disorders.

Tremor means shaking, Neijing mentions "diao". By the Qing Dynasty, Zhangshi Yitong began to have specialized descriptions of tremor, but only mentioned head and hand movements, without foot tremor. The reasons for this are twofold: first, tremors are mostly related to wind, and wind tends to affect the upper body, hence hand and head tremors are more common and foot tremors are less common; second, foot tremors often occur together with hand tremors, that is, tremors of both hands and feet, which is why foot tremors are rarely discussed in ancient texts.

bubble_chart Pattern Analysis

1. Blood Deficiency Wind Stirring︰Trembling feet, dizziness, blurred vision, palpitations, severe palpitations, or numbness in the lower limbs, thin pulse, pale red tongue with thin coating. Commonly seen in the elderly. As aging leads to the decline of qi and blood, blood deficiency fails to nourish the tendons and vessels, resulting in internal wind, hence the trembling feet. The key diagnostic points are: involuntary trembling of the feet, slow onset, pre-existing blood deficiency pattern (dizziness, blurred vision, palpitations, severe palpitations, etc.), or accompanying numbness due to blood failing to nourish the tendons. The treatment should focus on nourishing blood and calming wind, with the prescription Ding Zhen Wan.
2. Wind-cold Dampness Stagnation︰Trembling of the feet with pain, accompanied by aversion to wind and cold, fatigue and discomfort in the limbs, cold extremities, wiry and tight pulse, pale and dark red tongue with thin white and moist coating. It is commonly seen in young adults. There are obvious factors of wind-cold-damp invasion, either the body being affected by wind-cold or the feet being soaked in water-dampness. Wind is characterized by movement, dampness tends to descend, and cold causes congealment and stagnation. When wind, cold, and dampness combine to invade the meridians, qi and blood become obstructed, body fluids fail to distribute, and the tendons and vessels suffer from cervical malignancy with cachexia, leading to foot trembling. The key points for pattern identification are: sudden onset, trembling and pain in the feet, intermittent tremors. Cases caused by wind-cold are accompanied by pattern of common cold due to wind-cold, such as aversion to wind and cold, headache, and body pain; cases caused by water-dampness manifest as trembling and swelling of the feet, with dark blue skin, but few systemic symptoms. For wind-cold-induced cases, the treatment should focus on dispersing cold and releasing the exterior, supplemented by unblocking the collaterals, and the recommended formula is Five Accumulations Powder. For water-dampness-induced cases, the treatment should focus on eliminating dampness and dispersing cold, supplemented by unblocking the collaterals, and the recommended formula is Cock Crow Powder. "To treat wind, first invigorate blood; when blood is invigorated, wind will dissipate on its own." For treating foot trembling caused by wind-cold-damp, it is advisable to combine with warming meridians and invigorating blood herbs, and the formula Angelica Cold-Extremities Decoction is particularly suitable.

Foot tremor, like tremors in other parts of the body, is also a precursor of apoplexy. If treatment is deficient, it may lead to atrophy over time, and the tremor may spread to the upper limbs and head. Therefore, in treating foot tremor, it is essential to understand the mechanism of the disease and act promptly and decisively. Acupuncture may also be used in conjunction to facilitate early recovery.