Acupuncture for rheumatoid arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis affects the whole body, so the support should too. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can help you get through flares and take some of the ache out of your joints.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune condition that inflames the joints, most often the hands, wrists, feet and ankles, bringing pain, swelling and morning stiffness. Your rheumatologist manages the disease itself, but the day-to-day symptoms are what wear you down, and those are worth addressing too.
That's where acupuncture and Korean herbal medicine come in. They can ease joint pain, help settle inflammation, and steady you through a flare. They work alongside your rheumatology care, not in place of it.
Symptoms we treat
If a few of these sound familiar, it's worth coming in to talk it through. This list isn't a diagnosis; your first visit is where we sort that out.
Why acupuncture works here
We work at three levels: right at the joint, along the nerve, and through the nervous system as a whole, guided by what your body needs that day.
From first visit to plan
It's the same four steps for everyone, and we don't rush them. Your first visit includes a full consultation.
The clinical picture
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease that causes inflammation in multiple joints, including those in the hands, wrists, feet, and ankles. The exact cause is still unknown, but autoimmune mechanisms are considered a primary factor. An autoimmune response occurs when the immune system, which usually protects the body from external threats, mistakenly attacks the body itself.
The main issue in chronic rheumatoid arthritis is systemic joint involvement, with synovial and vascular proliferation and the absorption of cartilage and bone. This chronic systemic inflammatory condition, with no known cause, is marked by these characteristics. Although joint inflammation may naturally subside in some cases, persistent inflammation leads to progressive joint destruction, deformity, and functional impairment. Extra-articular symptoms, such as rheumatoid nodules, arteritis, neuritis, scleritis, pericarditis, lymphadenopathy, and splenomegaly, are also common. These symptoms are not considered complications but are now understood to be intrinsic to the nature of chronic rheumatoid arthritis.
Epidemiologically, it affects an estimated 0.3–1.5% of the population, with female prevalence rates 2–3 times higher than males. The peak incidence for females occurs between the ages of 30–50, while males experience a secondary peak incidence after age 50. The occurrence within families is relatively high, and monozygotic twins also show higher than expected incidence rates, suggesting that a combination of genetic predisposition (e.g. HLA-DR4 antigen) and environmental factors likely contribute to the condition.
Since the cause is unknown, Western medicine currently lacks causative or definitive treatments. NSAIDs are used as symptomatic treatment for polyarthritis pain. Immunosuppressants such as D-penicillamine, Carfenil, Bucillamine, Salazopyrine, and Methotrexate, along with corticosteroids, are also commonly used in various combinations to manage immune abnormalities.
In traditional Korean medicine, herbal prescriptions are tailored to each case to provide pain relief, improve overall health, and reduce side effects from Western medications. Acupuncture is used to alleviate joint pain and treat surrounding ligaments, tendons, and fascia affected by excessive strain. Acupuncture can enhance local circulation in the affected areas, helping to reduce inflammation and providing analgesic effects.
關 to connect
Read gwan in Korean. It is the first character of 關節, the Korean word for a joint.