中藥針灸治療帶狀皰疹 Chinese herbs And Acupuncture for Herpes zoster(shingles)

Today I would like to discuss a recent case  where I treated a patient for shingles .
Male,49 years old. First visit was on 2018-10-31.
He had some uncomfortable feeling in his right abdomen , somewhere close to his navel on October 26th, 2018. The next day  red dots appeared  in that area. On October 28th, early in the morning he woke up with severe chest  pain that made him thought he was going to have a heart attack. He went to the ER and got a diagnosis for shingles. He started to take antivirals on October 28th, however, the shingles still develop to his right back in lower and middle area.
I observed his tongue and felt his pulse . The picture below were taken in the first visit before acupuncture and herbs treatment.

I 

 Tongue: as you can see, this tongue is  enlarged  with thick white coating, which means he has dampness inside his body.
Pulse: deep and slow.
Urine : yellow colour.
Diagnosis :  shingles ,  Dampness-Heat type.
After one acupuncture and two days  of herbs. His symptoms improved a lot.
 The pictures  below were taken in second visit.

After two treatment sessions, he is almost recovered from shingles.

Here is an old case I published before. I am sorry that this case I didn't take the picture before acupuncture treatment.
Female, 55yrs old, first visit was in 2017-02-05. Chief complaint: left lower back pain since January 28, 2017, the pain was fixed in one area; left breast had sense of electric shock. These symptoms have gotten worse. Now her left lower back has severe pain. She also has headaches, and aversion to cold. Other complaints include frequent urination with less fluid passed each time, a stinging feeling when urinating, unquenchable thirst, and preference for cold drinks.

Check:  bright red rashes with a few bumps filled with clear fluid.  The bumps are as large as soybeans.The rashes   grow horizontal in the left lower back across the body longitudinal  line, and the skin in that area feels hot.

Tongue: light red colour, white coating

Pulse: rapid and thread-like, pulse rate is not consistent.

This case has both hot and cold symptoms at the same time, cold symptoms like aversion to cold, and hot symptoms of hot skin, frequent and short urination, thirst, and preference for cold drinks.

My diagnosis is hot type of shingles.

Treatment: First treatment was on 2017-02-05. I used acupuncture, cupping and herbs. 

                  Second was in 2017-02-06, acupuncture and herbs. The picture below was taken after one treatment.

                  Third was on 2017-02-09. The picture below was taken after two treatments.

                  Fourth was on 2017-02-14. The picture below was taken after three treatments.

The third and fourth  treatments were herbal  medicine only.

 女，55歲，2017年2 月5 日下午來診，訴2017年 1月28日始左側腰痛，痛處固定，左側乳房觸電感。以上感覺進行性加重。現左腰部疼痛劇烈，頭疼，怕冷。 尿短量少，尿頻，尿時有刺痛感。口渴喜冷飲。

查：疹色鮮紅，手觸熱感,，在左腰部带状分布，已越过 人体纵线。  舌：淡紅，苔白         脈：細 數，不均勻。

該病例既有寒像，如怕冷，又有熱像如疹色鮮紅，熱感，尿短量少，尿頻，尿時有刺痛感。舌脈不是典型的熱像。但根據她的疹色和皮膚溫度，我診斷是熱證。

中醫診斷：蛇串 瘡—熱證

一診治療（2 月5日） ：

針刺選穴：蛇頭，蛇尾，蛇7寸。火針刺破幾個大泡。局部拔罐。

中藥：龍膽草   生地   菊花   黃柏   黃芩  丹皮 車前子 黃梔子 扁蓄草 甘草