Asthma — lung deficiency
StarEssentials of Chinese Acupuncture (Beijing, Shanghai and Nanjing Colleges of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 1980) — the standard prescriptions of the Chinese colleges.
Points
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Back-Shu of the Lung; warmed with moxa to reinforce lung qi
Reinforcing method; moxibustion advised.
- ⚠ Pneumothorax
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Shu-Stream (earth) point of the Lung; strengthens metal through earth
Reinforcing method; moxibustion advised.
- ⚠ Major vessel
-
He-Sea (earth) point of the Stomach; invigorates spleen and stomach to support the lung
Reinforcing method; moxibustion advised.
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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BL13 Feishu
-
⚠ Pneumothorax risk: too deep an insertion can puncture the pleura. World Health Organization 1999, Section II §5.2 (Lung and pleura), p. 25; Wu J, Hu Y, Zhu Y, Yin P, Litscher G, Xu S 2015, Table 1 (Pneumothorax associated with acupuncture)
-
-
LU9 Taiyuan
-
⚠ Major vessel close by: risk of arterial puncture and haematoma. World Health Organization 1999, Section II §5.2 (Other points), p. 26
-
Treatment Principle
Reinforce the qi of the lung with reinforcing needling and moxibustion.
Indications
Method
Reinforcing method; moxibustion is advisable.
⚠ Cautions
An asthma attack with inability to speak in sentences, cyanosis, exhaustion or a silent chest is a medical emergency; acupuncture must not replace the patient's prescribed inhalers or delay emergency care. BL13 overlies the lung: needle obliquely and shallowly to avoid pneumothorax. LU9 lies beside the radial artery.
About
The textbook's prescription for the deficient type of asthma from weakness of the lung.
Rationale
Moxa at BL13 reinforces lung qi. LU9 and ST36 are both earth points in five-phase terms, so needling them strengthens the lung (metal) by invigorating the spleen and stomach (earth) that nourish it.
Clinical Notes
For long-standing, persistent asthma, the book adds GV12 and BL43 with indirect moxa on garlic; for accompanying spleen deficiency, add moxa at CV12 and BL20. The book's asthma includes bronchial asthma, asthmatic bronchitis and the breathlessness of other diseases, and advises other measures besides acupuncture for symptomatic dyspnoea. It also gives an ear-acupuncture option during attacks.
Sources
- Beijing College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, et al. Essentials of Chinese Acupuncture. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1980. Chapter III, Asthma, p. 347–348.
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