Point Location
Links
Point Location Study Support Sites - put together by Paul Johnson, LCTA lecturer
www.silencespeaks.co.uk
This outstanding site has been put together by LCTA student Luis Melendez. It features excellent video clips showing how to locate the acupuncture points in LCTA's PL 1 curriculum. In addition, it has a series of anatomy video clips and a host of other useful downloads (such as point categories) that will help in your studies.
www.acuxo.com/index.asp
Click on either MERIDIANS or ACUPUNCTURE POINTS to access point location information. This is a first rate site with high quality graphics and accurate information. Detailed drawings show the location of points on a full figure and a close up of the local area, although the images concentrate on muscles and don't really show the underlying skeletal structure. Clear location descriptions are given along with detailed actions and indications for each point. Take a look at the rest of the site for a lot of other interesting stuff.
www.qi-journal.com
Click on the TRADITIONAL CHINESE MEDICINE button or go straight to www.qi-journal.com/TCMArticles/acumodel/acumodel.asp to find the interactive acupuncture point figure. By clicking on the small model you can access any part of the body - back or front - and zoom in to select any point. You can then access point location and function information. Great for testing your knowledge.
www.lifence.ac.jp/cs/adss
This will take you to the Acupoint Database Search System run by the Goto College of Medical Arts and Sciences, where you can access in-depth information on 409 acupuncture points in terms of Chinese name, Japanese name, WHO Point Number, name meaning, location, indication, mechanism of action and a whole lot more. This is excellent site to visit even if your acupoint knowledge is outstanding.
www.yinyanghouse.com
This site has a nicely interactive but somewhat basic acupoint database which you can access directly at
www.yinyanghouse.com/acupuncturepoints/locations_theory_and_clinical_applications.
www.tcmstudent.com
As you might expect from the title, this site is designed specifically to help you study TCM. In the TCM QUICK REFERENCES box you are able to access acupoint tables, cun body measurements, Command Point and Mu and Shu tables as well as information on a host of other TCM topics.
homepage.tinet.ie/~progers/pt.htm
Although a mine of information on acupoint names, classifications and locations, this can be a cumbersome site to navigate your way around.
www.acupuncture.com.au/education/acupoints/points.html
This site is easy to use but the information is a bit basic. A good one to look at if you're just starting out.
www.chinesemedicinesampler.com/acupuncture.html
This is a general TCM site with a home page that features concise descriptions of the different classifications of points - Transporting, Yuan Source, Xi Cleft, Luo, etc.
www.harmonyhealth.com/page36.html
All the Alarm Points illustrated on one page.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acupuncture_point
There is a nice introductory article here summing up the general theories about acupupoints. However, you need to realize that Wikepedia can be as unreliable as it is interesting. Citing Wikepedia is not acceptable in academic practice.
www.biosonic.org/manualEng/12NOTES.html
A bit of a curiosity, this one, detailing the relationship of musical notes to the organ systems and meridians - not really a point location site, but still worth a look!
The Fundamentals of Point Location an article written by Paul Johnson that was published in the Chinese Medicine Times E-Journal.
Running The Meridians
"Running The Meridians" is the exercise that you do at the start of all your Point Location lessons. There are three clips on youtube that you can practice along with to help you to learn the superficial channel pathways.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hufm2dW27HI This clip shows the "Running The Meridians" exercise in great detail. Beginners start here!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=d23_nMwggqI This clip shows the "Running The Meridians" exercise with a little less speaking and is good for those who already have a basic understanding of the exercise.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrGOOqn_mLo This clip shows "Running The Meridians" performed as a breathing exercise with minimal dialogue.
We would like to keep this list as up to date as possible. If you come across a website that you feel should be added to the Point Location Study Links, or if any of the above links die, please contact Paul Johnson.