Common cold — wind-heat
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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Governing Vessel point below C7 where the yang channels meet; clears heat
Reducing method.
- ⚠ Spinal cord / medulla
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Gall Bladder point below the occiput; expels wind-heat
Reducing method.
- ⚠ Spinal cord / medulla
-
Luo point of the San Jiao; expels wind-heat
Reducing method.
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Yuan-Source of the Large Intestine; expels wind-heat
Reducing method.
- Pregnancy: contraindicated
-
Jing-Well of the Lung; bled to clear wind-heat from the Lung channel and ease the throat
Pricked to bleed.
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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GV14 Dazhui
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⚠ Spinal cord / medulla risk: deep or misdirected insertion can enter the spinal canal. World Health Organization 1999, Section II §5.2 (Central nervous system), p. 25; Wu J, Hu Y, Zhu Y, Yin P, Litscher G, Xu S 2015, Table 2 (Central nervous system injury associated with acupuncture)
-
-
GB20 Fengchi
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⚠ Spinal cord / medulla risk: deep or misdirected insertion can enter the spinal canal. Wu J, Hu Y, Zhu Y, Yin P, Litscher G, Xu S 2015, Table 2 (Central nervous system injury associated with acupuncture); World Health Organization 1999, Section II §5.2 (Central nervous system), p. 25
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Treatment Principle
Expel wind and clear heat with reducing method, mainly on Du and Shaoyang points.
Indications
Method
Reducing method; LU11 is pricked to bleed.
⚠ Cautions
Seek medical care for high fever, breathlessness, a very sore throat with difficulty swallowing, or worsening illness. Angle GB20 toward the nose. LI4 is contraindicated in pregnancy. Use sterile lancets when bleeding LU11.
About
The textbook's prescription for the common cold from wind-heat, with fever, sweating and a sore throat.
Rationale
GV14 is where the Du channel meets all the yang channels and clears heat. GB20, TE5 and LI4 drive out wind and heat, and bleeding LU11 vents heat from the Lung channel and relieves the throat.
Clinical Notes
As prevention during outbreaks, the book suggests daily moxibustion at BL12 or ST36.
Sources
- Beijing College of Traditional Chinese Medicine, et al. Essentials of Chinese Acupuncture. Beijing: Foreign Languages Press, 1980. Chapter III, Common cold, p. 344–345.
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