Objective To observe the clinical effect of Bushen Tongluo Recipe combined with methotrexate in the treatment of liver-kidney Yin deficiency type of rheumatoid arthritis and the effect on serum cytokines.Methods 64 patients with liver-kidney Yin deficiency type of rheumatoid arthritis were randomly divided into treatment group and control group, each group was 32 cases, but 61 cases actually completed with 31 cases in the treatment group and 30 cases in the control group.Both two groups were given the basic treatment with methotrexate, and the treatment group was added with Bushen Tongluo Recipe, 2 times a day, 1 bag each time.The course of treatment was 12 weeks.After the course of treatment finished, the changes of serum cytokines IL-1β,IL-2 R,IL-6,IL-8,IL-10 and TNF-α in 2 groups were observed.Results The total effective rate was 83.87%（26/31）in the treatment group, better than that in the control group which was 50.00%（15/30）,indicating statistically significant difference（P<0.05）.Compared the same group before and after the treatment, the levels of IL-6 and TNF-α in the treatment group was decreased（P<0.05）,but better than those in the control group in same period（P<0.05）.Conclusion Bushen Tongluo Recipe combined with methotrexate is effective in the treatment of liver-kidney Yin deficiency type of rheumatoid arthritis, and can reduce the levels of cytokines IL-6 and TNF-α.