The Acupuncture Treatment of Muscle Atrophy

Chief Complaint: Fatigue, post viral muscle atrophy, arm pains along radial bones in both arms, extreme shyness
Western Diagnosis: Post viral syndrome, muscle atrophy.
Medical History: Male age 21, suffered sever CFS at age 13-severe fatigue, fevers, weakness, immune dysfunction. History of following hopefuls of herbs, vitamin/mineral protocols and biochemistry adjustments. The illness left him with the above mentions complaints. Particularly the atrophy of muscles of upper arms and back and upper body. Lower half of the body was strong.
Questioning exam: Patient: initially was too shy to look in the eye and so quiet in voice that it was at first difficult to get past the point of his only request which was to “feel better” and “have no pain” and then to be able to play basketball.
Pulse exam: Pulse: the yang positions were full and tense; the yin positions were particularly weak and deficient most notably the Kidney and the Liver pulse were almost imperceptible. Spleen and Stomach pulses were weak.
Tongue exam: Tongue: Red in color on the sides and tip. More pale purplish in color in the middle and paler at the root.
OM Diagnosis: Deficient Qi, Deficient Spleen and Stomach Qi. Deficient Yin of the Spleen. Deficient Kidney Qi.
Heat entrapped in the muscles of the upper back and arms due to deficiencies which caused the stagnancies of Liver Blood and Qi. Shen problem showing in the extreme shyness, and inability to look into my eyes- this shows some signs of Heart Shen and Liver Hun involvement. My assessment of this is the the blockage of energy, blood and nutrition to the muscles of the upper body included the nourishment of the spirts of the organs.
Deficient Lung Qi.
Treatment Principle: Build Qi and Blood through dietary adjustments to begin with to build the digestion and transformation of foods, fluids, qi and blood.
Build the Blood of the Liver.
Move the Qi to release trapped heat.
Build healthy qi to release stuckness in the muscle to address the pain patterns in the meridians involved in the Lung, Large Intestine, Small Intestine meridians.
Tonify and Nourish the Pericardium, Heart, Liver and Kidney Shens.
Build Yang Qi of Governing Vessel, and Shoayang Meridian Flow to Build Energies of Back.
Point Prescription: S.I. 3/UB 62: Open and build Governing Vessel and Tai Yang meridians.
GB 34 Bilaterally with GB 41, 40 and Liver 3: to Open Dai mo circulation between upper and lower body, support the tendons and muscles: along with L.I.4 for pain of 4Gates or 2Gates and the meridian of the Large Intestine.
LI 9, 10 build and clear trapped heat from the muscle.
GB 20/21 bilaterally.
UB 13, 43, 17, 18, 21, 22, 23
GV 4, 3, 8, 9, 14 with moxabustion
SP 6, ST 36 to build Qi.
Herbal Formula: Food as medicine: chicken soup, bone soup, some ginseng, astragalus.
Patient felt herb formulas made him ill… difficulty digesting complex formulas, therefore we based herbs on soups. Being much more classical in the herb-nourishing building department. Other “herbal” formulas included Oats, with dates, raisins, and almonds. This was and is an extremely sensitive, intelligent young man, studying mathematics at a top university.
Lifestyle Prescription: Over time this young man determined to become a vegetarian. So the chicken soups were adjusted to miso based, with sea vegetables, occasional additions to the soups of codonopsis, astragalus root, and red dates. As well as very green nourishing vegetable soups and beans. Particularly Kidney, adzuki, white beans.
Results: The results have been extraordinary.
The pain patterns subsided fairly rapidly. The upper body became stronger, he stood taller, coloring from pale to pink and health, he became engaged in conversations, making jokes, and the muscles of the upper back and back have begun to grow as well as the arms. The arms had pains from a lack of energy and from deficiencies and the gentle and gradual approach built him over time. This process was a year plus and is ongoing.
He now plays basketball on a team.
Continues to build energy, started yoga, got a good job and is otherwise a very healthy and postive man.
Synopsis: It takes process over a long time to make continued progress. The pain resolved fairly early in the course of treatment. The patient could have stopped there but in doing an ongoing process he has regained a level of development in the growth process which was delayed, atrophied due to previous illness.