Arthritis types symptoms according to TCM:

1- Wind damp cold: Wandering pain of joints with localized swelling & numbness, localized cold pain which is aggravated by cold, in cloudy and rainy days & alleviated by warmth, stiff joints in mornings limited flexibility, wind and cold aversion.

2- Wind heat damp: Red, feverish, swollen & painful joints which are aggravated by touching, rigidity, or subcutaneous nodules, feverish body with flushed face, excessive thirst, sore throat, scanty deep yellow urine.

3- Cold and Heat: Redness swelling and pain of joints, general fever but warmth preference, rigidity of joints, thirst with desire for hot drinks.

4- Phlegm and blood stagnation: Long-term intermittent arthritis, swelling rigidity & deformity of joints, limbs numbness, dark purple lips.

5- Qi deficiency with retained pathogenic factors: Prolonged arthritis with intermittent joints pain, lassitude, lusterless complexion, cold pain of lumbar vertebrae, joints inflexibility, weakness of knees, atrophy of muscles.

Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine for Arthritis:
Acupuncture points to treat Arthritis are all over your body, not just over the affected area. 

During the treatment, small needles may be inserted along your arms and legs, as well as the affected area. The frequency and number of treatments may be modified according to the condition you present. 

Several studies have shown that Acupuncture can help people with arthritis. In one Scandinavian study, 25% of arthritis patients who had been scheduled for knee surgery cancelled their operation after receiving a series of Acupuncture treatments. 

Even without the studies, the popularity of Acupuncture for Arthritis continues to grow because more and more people have found significant relief from Chinese medicine without side effects.

There are many Chinese Herbal formulas that can be prescribed for arthritis. Your acupuncturist will examine you, take a look at the onset of your condition and learn your signs and symptoms to determine which type of arthritis or Bi Syndrome you are suffering from and decides which herbs should be combined in your formula to address the root causes of your arthritis in addition to your immediate symptoms.

Arthritis and acupuncture research:

Acupuncture is effective in the treatment of shoulder periarteritis. Of the 210 subjects studied, 158 were cured, 40 improved and 12 showed no significant improvement.[J. Traditional Chinese Medicine, 2003 Sep.;23(3):201-02] 

Acupuncture plus manipulative regulation of knee muscle balance can effectively improve the clinical symptoms and knee joint's motor function of patients with knee osteoarthritis, and can avoid the further development of disease. It is a proved effective method for knee osteoarthritis.
[Zhongguo Gu Shang, 2010 Dec;23(12):895-8. (pubmed)]​