Complete Atlas of Chinese Acupuncture

Author: Zhou Liqun
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1998-03-01
Features:
Segment: Part of the Standard Acupoint System
1. Acupoint Location Methods
The methods for locating acupoints are divided into three types: surface anatomical landmark method, bone measure method, and finger measure method. These methods are used in combination, with the surface anatomical landmarks as the primary reference, measuring the distances of various parts in fractional units, and using fingers to compare and determine the exact location of acupoints. The following details each method:
1.1 Surface Anatomical Landmark Method
This refers to the method of determining acupoint locations based on various surface anatomical landmarks. Surface anatomical landmarks can be divided into fixed landmarks and movable landmarks. Fixed landmarks include protrusions or depressions formed by joints and muscles in different parts, the outlines of the five senses, hairlines, fingernails (or toenails), nipples, and navel pits. For example:
- Yanglingquan (GB34) is located anterior and inferior to the fibular head;
- Biqiao (LI15) is located at the tip of the deltoid muscle;
- Zanzhu (BL2) is located at the inner canthus of the eye;
- Yintang (EX-HN3) is located at the midpoint between the two eyebrows;
- Shanzhong (CV17) is located at the midpoint between the two nipples (in females, when lying supine).
Movable landmarks refer to the gaps, depressions, wrinkles, or tips that appear on the joints, muscles, tendons, or skin due to movement. For example:
- Tingguang (SI19) is located between the tragus and the mandibular joint, forming an indentation when the mouth is slightly opened;
- Quchi (LI11) is located at the lateral end of the cubital crease when the elbow is flexed.
The main surface anatomical landmarks of the body are as follows:
Head:
a. Midline of the anterior hairline (the median anterior edge of the frontal hair-bearing area);
b. Midline of the posterior hairline (the median posterior edge of the frontal hair-bearing area);
c. Supraorbital angle (frontal hairline curve at the forehead);
d. Gan (temporal bone mastoid process).
Face:
a. Between the eyebrows (Yintang, the midpoint between the inner canthi of the eyes);
b. Pupil (when sitting upright and looking straight ahead, the center of the pupil) or Zhongzhong (the midpoint of the line connecting the inner and outer canthi of the eye).
Neck and Nape:
a. Adam’s apple (the convex part of the larynx);
b. Spinous process of the 7th cervical vertebra.
Chest:
a. Suprasternal notch (the depression above the sternum);
b. Midpoint of the sternoclavicular joint (the junction of the sternum and xiphoid process);
c. Nipple (the center of the nipple).
Abdomen:
a. Navel (Shenque, the center of the navel pit);
b. Superior margin of the pubic symphysis (the intersection of the superior margin of the pubic symphysis and the midline);
c. Anterior superior iliac spine (the superior protrusion of the anterior part of the iliac crest).
Lateral Chest and Abdomen:
a. Apex of the axilla (the highest point at the center of the axilla);
b. Tip of the 11th rib (the free end of the 11th rib).
Back, Waist, and Sacrum:
a. Spinous process of the 7th cervical vertebra;
b. Spinous processes of the thoracic vertebrae (T1–T12), lumbar vertebrae (L1–L5), median sacral crest, and coccyx;
c. Root point of the scapular spine (the point near the spine on the medial margin of the scapula);
d. Acromial angle (the intersection of the lateral margin of the acromion and the medial continuation of the scapula);
e. Posterior superior iliac spine (the superior protrusion of the posterior part of the iliac crest).
Upper Limb:
a. Anterior axillary fold head (the anterior end of the axillary fold);
b. Posterior axillary fold head (the posterior end of the axillary fold);
c. Cubital crease;
d. Olecranon (the tip of the ulna);
e. Transverse palmar and dorsal wrist creases (the creases on the line connecting the radial and ulnar styloid processes).
Lower Limb:
a. Greater trochanter (Futu, the trochanter of the femur);
b. Medial condyle of the femur (Medial Meniscus);
c. Medial condyle of the tibia (Medial Meniscus);
d. Gluteal crease (the transition area between the buttock and thigh);
e. Medial malleolus (the central protrusion of the inner malleolus);
f. Popliteal crease (the crease in the popliteal fossa);
g. Medial malleolus (the central protrusion of the inner malleolus);
h. Lateral malleolus (the central protrusion of the outer malleolus).
1.2 Bone Measure Method
This refers to the method of locating acupoints by measuring the length and width of the body’s parts based on surface bones, determining the fractional units, and using them for acupoint localization. It is based on the fractional units of the human body’s parts as specified in Lingshu·Gudu, combined with the fractional units created by scholars of past generations (where the length between two set bone landmarks is divided into equal parts, each part being 1 inch, and ten parts being 1 foot), as the basis for locating acupoints.