Taichong and Qimen
Star太衝、期門 (Tàichōng, Qīmén)
Modern Chinese point-pair (对穴) teaching, as compiled by Guo Changqing and colleagues at the School of Acupuncture, Moxibustion and Tuina, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine.
Points
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Yuan-Source point of the Liver; spreads Liver qi and subdues Liver fire and yang.
Seated with the foot on the floor, or supine: on the dorsum of the foot in the hollow between the first and second metatarsals, lateral to the tendon of extensor hallucis longus. Insert obliquely upward (proximally) 0.5–1.0 cun into the dorsal interossei, seeking local aching and numbness that spreads to the sole.
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Front-Mu point of the Liver; spreads Liver qi and relieves hypochondriac pain.
Patient supine: directly below the nipple in the sixth intercostal space, 4 cun lateral to the midline — two intercostal spaces below ST17. In women, locate it on the midclavicular line in the sixth space. Insert obliquely 0.5–0.8 cun along the intercostal space, seeking local aching and numbness radiating toward the back.
- ⚠ Major vessel
Needling Safety
Cited hazards for these points. Tick what applies to the patient to see the cautions that follow from it.
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LV14 Qimen
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⚠ Vascular injury or haematoma has been reported after needling this point. Wu J, Hu Y, Zhu Y, Yin P, Litscher G, Xu S 2015, Table 4 (Organ injury) and Table 8 (Hemorrhage)
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No cited needling data yet for LV3. No flag here does not mean no risk.
Treatment Principle
Open the chest and regulate qi; clear Liver fire and spread Liver qi.
Indications
Method
LV3 is needled obliquely upward 0.5–1.0 cun on the foot; LV14 obliquely 0.5–0.8 cun along the sixth intercostal space with the patient supine. The book gives no retention time or moxibustion instructions for this pair.
⚠ Cautions
LV14 lies over the lung: needle it only obliquely or transversely along the intercostal space, never perpendicularly, and do not insert deep enough to reach the endothoracic fascia, which lies directly on the pleura — pneumothorax is the risk. On the right the liver lies beneath. In slender patients stay at the lower end of the range.
About
A Liver-channel pairing of a foot point and a chest point, for constrained or fiery Liver qi: hypochondriac pain and distension, vomiting, headache, poor sleep, irritability, menstrual irregularity or absence, hernia and abdominal pain.
Rationale
LV3 is the Yuan-Source point of the Liver and LV14 its Front-Mu point, so the pair treats the organ through both its source qi at the foot and its collecting point over the ribs. LV14 is also a meeting point of the Liver and Spleen channels with the Yin Wei Mai, and it harmonises the Liver with the Stomach — hence vomiting. LV3 spreads Liver qi and subdues rising yang, reaching the head, the spirit and the menses.
Clinical Notes
In Chinese medicine 'hernia' (shan) covers more than an abdominal-wall hernia: it includes painful swelling of the scrotum or lower abdomen along the Liver channel.
Sources
- Guo Changqing (ed.). Acupuncture of Acupoint Combinations: Quick Lookups. Daylesford: Heart Space Publications, 2020 (English edition; © China Science and Technology Press). ISBN 978-0-6489215-5-4. Chapter 5, combination 4.
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