The information provided here is not a replacement for a doctor. You shouldn't use it for the purpose of self-diagnosing or self-medicating but rather so you can have a more informed discussion with a professional TCM practitioner.
At a glance
Preliminary reading: What is a pattern? The concept of Cold
Key attributes
Chinese name: 痛痹 Pinyin name: Tòng Bì
Pattern nature: Full
Causes
Common causes: 1. External Cold, 2. Weak constitution
Diagnosis
Common symptoms: Joint pain Stiff neck Joint stiff Swollen joints Pain in the muscles and one other symptoms
Pulse type(s): Tight (Jin), Floating (Fu)
Tongue description: White coating
Treatment
Treatment principle: Warm the Channels, disperse Cold from Exterior, relieve pain
Common formulas: Wu Tou Tang
Pathology
It is a type of the Painful Obstruction Syndrome (Bi Syndrome 痹证). The Chinese name is called Tong Bi or Han Bi (痛痹 / 寒痹).
The Defensive Qi can be penetrated by external Pernicious Influences when the patients is in poor health. When the Cold invades the Channels and joints and settles there, it causes intense pain and stiffness, often in a single local place.
The Cold can also invade muscles and sinews and lead to pain and stiffness there, especially around shoulders and neck area.
This pain can be relieved by applying heat and worsen when exposed cold.
Causes
External Cold: External Cold, Wind and Damp can penetrate the Body's Defensive Qi and settle down in the joints.
Weak constitution: Weak constitution means the Defensive Qi is not strong enough to fight against the external Pernicious Influence invasion. It can be due to genetic defect, overwork, lack of exercise, or long term sickness.
Diagnosing Cold invading the Channels joints and muscles
Diagnosing a pattern in Chinese Medicine is no easy feat and should be left to professional practitioners. In particular one has to know how to differentiate between different types of pulses and tongue coatings, shapes and colors as well as learn to read from a long list of seemingly unrelated symptoms.
Pulse type(s): Tight (Jin) or floating (Fu)
Tongue description: White coating
Main symptoms: Joint pain Stiff neck Joint stiff Swollen joints Pain in the muscles Numbness of the muscles
Diagnosis commentary: Key characteristic symptoms of this pattern are the intense joints pain and stiff which can be relieved when applying heat.
Treating Cold invading the Channels joints and muscles
Treatment principle
Warm the Channels, disperse Cold from Exterior, relieve pain
Herbal formulas used to treat Cold invading the Channels joints and muscles
Wu Tou Tang
Source date: 220 AD
Number of ingredients: 6 herbs
Key actions: Warms the channels and remove obstruaction. Disperse Cold and Dampness. Warms the joints. Relieve joints pain.
Formula summary
Wu Tou Tang is a 6-ingredient Chinese Medicine formula. Invented in 220 AD, it belongs to the category of formulas that warm the Meridians and disperse Cold.