Lumbar pain due to kidney vacuity. Limp aching lumbus and knees and lack of strength in the legs exacerbated by exercise and from which rest brings little relief, accompanied by a forceless fine pulse, qì timidity and lack of strength, and clear uninhibited urine together indicate insufficiency of kidney yáng. A forceless surging pulse with yellow or reddish urine, and periodic flaming of vacuity fire indicate insufficiency of kidney yīn.
Medicinal therapy: Supplement the kidney. Mild cases can be treated with Young Maid Pill (青娥丸qīng é wán). More severe cases with signs of essence-blood depletion can be treated with Chinese Angelica and Rehmannia Beverage (当归地黄饮dāng guī dì huáng yǐn), Left-Restoring [Kidney Yin] Pill (左归丸zuǒ guī wán), or Right-Restoring [Life Gate] Pill (右归丸yòu guī wán).
Acumoxatherapy: For insufficiency of kidney yáng, base treatment mainly on BL and GV. Select BL-23 (Kidney Transport, 肾俞 shèn shù), GV-4 (Life Gate, 命门 mìng mén), GV-3 (Lumbar Yáng Pass, 腰阳关 yāo yáng guān), BL-40 (Bend Center, 委中 wěi zhōng), ouch points (阿是穴ā shì xué), and CV-4 (Pass Head, 关元 guān yuán); needle with supplementation and add moxa. For kidney yīn vacuity, base treatment mainly on BL and KI. Select BL-23 (Kidney Transport, 肾俞 shèn shù), KI-3 (Great Ravine, 太溪 tài xī), BL-52 (Will Chamber, 志室 zhì shì), BL-40 (Bend Center, 委中 wěi zhōng), ouch points (阿是穴ā shì xué), and BL-60 (Kunlun Mountains, 昆仑 kūn lún); needle with supplementation. For yīn vacuity with effulgent fire, add KI-6 (Shining Sea, 照海 zhào hǎi), KI-2 (Blazing Valley, 然谷 rán gǔ), and HT-8 (Lesser Mansion, 少府 shào fǔ), needling with drainage.