Chinese herbal medicine for Urticaria (Hives)

 Chinese herbal medicine for Urticaria (Hives)

The patient

36 year old female presented with red and itchy patches of no fixed location on arms and legs. She was prescribed over the counter anti-histamine by her GP to take daily. Her period cycles was also getting shorter to 25 days. Sleep had been poor with nightmares. 

The treatment

Patient was prescribed Chinese herbal medicine weekly for 4 weeks along with dietary and lifestyle advice to follow.

The outcome

Redness and itchy skin gradually reduced and eventually stopped. Patient was advised to slowly phase out the use of anti-histamine until stopping it altogether when it was no longer required. Period was regulated back to her usual 28 days cycle and her sleep was also improved. 

 

Acupuncture for contact dermatitis

Presenting case

Patient developed allergic reaction to the use of new eye cream. The skin under both eyes are red, swollen and small patches of broken skin with yellow discharge/crust. Patient also displayed mild hay fever symptoms. Patient was taking anti-histamine for the allergy and using emollient moisturizer to keep the skin hydrated. 

Treatment

Daily acupuncture for a one week as well as changing dietary habits.

Outcome

Skin gradually recovered to normal appearance. 

Before	After

Chinese Medicine for Suspected Corona Virus Symptom Support and Management

The patient

37 year old house wife with a history of digestive problems. 

Clinical presentation

Patient presented with a temperature of 38.1°C, dry itchy throat with a slight amount of unproductive phlegm, nausea, loose bowel, very frequent urination and a feeling of burning heat in chest and back.  Patient called 111 to report symptoms and was advised to self isolate at home. Patient took one recommended dose of Panadol which brought the temperature down to 37.3°C.

Treatment

The patient took Chinese herbal formulas and used acupressure points to control and reduce symptoms whilst following diet advice set out by the practitioner. 

Patient experienced difficulty in breathing on day 4, additional formula was added to support the lung function and clear phlegm, and patient was advised on altering sleeping position to ease difficulty in breathing. Panting and breathing difficulty disappeared on the following day.

Outcome

Fever was controlled, discomfort was reduced to tolerable level to support body's natural fight against the virus. Digestion, bowel movement and urination returned to normal function and frequency. Patient has since fully recovered without any respiratory symptoms.

There is no known treatment for Coronavirus. In China, Chinese medicine was and is still currently widely used in the initial stage of cases with mild symptoms and the recovery stage of severe cases. In patients presenting with mild symptoms, it supports the body's basic functions whilst the body builds up its immunity against the virus and prevents serious conditions developing. Several Chinese herbal formulas were recommended in the 7th edition for the trial version of National Clinical Treatment Protocol for the treatment of COVID-19. 

If you require any further information or would like to book a consultation, please contact me on ivyxxu@xuclinic.co.uk.

Chinese medicine for suspected Coronavirus, COVID-19. Image link

	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3	Day 4	Day 5	Day 6
Temperature	37.3- 38.1°C	37.3- 37.7°C	37.01- 38.0°C	36.8-38.0°C	36.9- 37.5°C	36.5- 37.2°C
Sore throat	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	N
Cough	Y	N	Unknown	Y	Y	N
Phelgm	Y	Y	Y	Unknown	N	Unknown
Breathing difficulty	N	N	N	Y	N	N
Headache	Y	Y	N	N	N	N
Loose bowel	Y	Y	Y	Y	N	N
Blocked Sinus	N	N	Y	N	N	Unknown

Acupuncture for insomnia

The patient

48 year old female patient has not been sleeping well for 2 months. She described having difficulty falling asleep and feeling wide awake at night. She could get one or two hours of sleep on a good night.

Other presenting conditions include depression, phlegm production with severe wheezing, night sweats, gastritis, headache, night sweats and loose bowel.

Patient poor digestion and stress dampened her appetite, patient felt weak and found it difficult with day to day tasks.

Treatment

Patient attended 5 weekly acupuncture session and took 2 weeks of Chinese herbal medicine.

Acupuncture for insomnia, image resource

Outcome

Patient reported having much better sleep during 5th visit, averaging 5/6 hours sleep each night. Her emotion was also much stable. Her no long suffered from headaches, wheezing had stopped alongside improved digestion, bowel movement and reduced night sweats.

Acupuncture for anxiety and panic attack

Mid aged IT professional presenting with anxiety and sever morning panic attacks for 2 weeks. He also experienced difficulty in breathing, palpitation, cramp in both calves, spontaneous sweating and tingling sensation in flexor aspect of fingers. His blood test results were normal. He was was signed off work due to the severe anxiety and panic attacks he was having. He was also considering postponing a mid haul holiday due to fear of having a panic attack during the four hour flight,

After 4 sessions of acupuncture (twice a week) and taking 2 weeks Chinese herbal medicine, his anxiety level and severity of panic attacks was greatly reduced and other additional symptoms had all cleared. Patient felt confident to travel and resumed travel plan.

Acupuncture for anxiety and panic attacks, image resource 

Acupuncture for cough

Female patient suffered from on and off cough for ten years. Recent flare up of a chesty cough lasted 2 weeks. She presented with restricted breathing and violent cough that would last 6 to 7 minutes. The cough would also wake her up at night and affect sleep. Patient had to sleep with propped pillows and was very tired.

After one session of acupuncture and taking one week of Chinese herbal medicine, the violent cough reduced to a infrequent light cough that would last seconds. Night time cough stopped completely allowing her to sleep through the night. Tightness in the chest was also improved. Patient continued to improve following further four sessions of acupuncture and reported her cough stopped completely on her sixth visit. She also noticed improvement on the digestion, leg cramp and energy.

Patient attended a follow up session 2 months later and remained symptom free.

Acupuncture for cough, image source 

Acupuncture for frequent Epilepsy

Acupuncture for frequent Epilepsy 

Female patient in mid 40s has been suffering from monthly seizure attacks since 14 years ago. The frequency and severity of attacks greatly affected her quality of life, as a result she had to take early retirement and seldom leaves home on her own. 

The patient first self referred for acupuncture treatment for her shoulder pain. As acupuncture treats the body as a whole, the underlying cause for her epilepsy was treated at the same time. 

The frequency of epileptic seizure attacks reduced over time alongside her original shoulder pain complaint following regular acupuncture treatments. Patient gradually developed increased confidence and started going out on her own and even enjoyed a short haul trip abroad independently in Spring 2019. The dosage of medication was reduced by her neurological consultant at a recent medical review based on her stable condition. 

Table and charts below illustrates the gradual reduction of epileptic seizure attacks since receiving acupuncture.

   

Acupuncture help to reduced the frequency of epilepsy attack

                                 

Line chart showing acupuncture help to reduce frequent epilepsy attack