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LI17

Tianding

Star

天鼎 (Tiāndǐng) — Celestial Vessel

Large Intestine channel · point 17

Not yet clinically reviewed

Window of Heaven point

Traditionally used for

  • Nose & throat
  • Cough & breathing

Cautions & contraindications

  • No deep needling
  • Avoid blood vessels

Location

On the anterior aspect of the neck, level with the cricoid cartilage, just posterior to the border of sternocleidomastoid — directly inferior to LI18 and level with ST10.

How to locate: Have the patient turn the head to the opposite side so sternocleidomastoid stands out. The point is just behind the muscle's posterior border at the level of the cricoid cartilage, directly below LI18.

Distances are in cun, a proportional unit — how to measure.

Body map, front: LI17 · Front of neck
Fig. — LI17 · Front of neck After Albinus, 1747
Body map, front: LI17 · Front of neck

LI17 · Front of neck · Albinus, Tabulae sceleti et musculorum, 1747

3D view

3D view not available for this point: its position on the 3D model couldn't be checked against its location text, so it is not shown. The 2D maps above show it.

  • The lung is not drawn: the anatomical model used here does not include it as a surface. This is a limit of the model, not of the anatomy. The pneumothorax risk above still applies.

Needling

Cited needling

  • ⚠ Pneumothorax

Techniques — the source gives these as alternatives:

  1. Perpendicular insertion
    Depth 0.3–0.5 cun
    skindeeper
  2. Oblique insertion
    Depth 0.5–0.8 cun
    skindeeper

Case reports: pneumothorax after needling at this point (2 cases in Wu et al. 2015, including a death).

Depths describe average adult habitus in the cited population, never a single safe number for the patient in front of you. Palpate and adjust.

Sources (2)
  1. Wu J, Hu Y, Zhu Y, Yin P, Litscher G, Xu S. Systematic review of adverse effects: a further step towards modernization of acupuncture in China. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015;2015:432467 — Table 1 (Pneumothorax associated with acupuncture) Supports: pneumothorax (case report)
  2. Deadman P, Al-Khafaji M, Baker K. A Manual of Acupuncture. Hove: Journal of Chinese Medicine Publications; 1998 — p. 118 Supports: techniques (names this point)

Site notes · not cited

  • No deep needling
  • Avoid blood vessels
Depth: 0.3–0.5 cun
Angle: Perpendicular
⚠ Cautions: Needle shallowly and avoid the carotid artery and jugular vein.

Functions

  • Benefits the throat and voice
  • Dissipates phlegm nodules

Indications

Sore throat and sudden loss of voicedifficulty swallowingscrofula and goitre

Similar Points

Tianchong how are these connected? (Tianchong) Tian Huang how are these connected? (Tian Huang) Tianchi how are these connected? (Tianchi) Tian Shi how are these connected? (Tian Shi) Tianchuang how are these connected? (Tianchuang) Tong Tian how are these connected? (Tong Tian)

Sources

  • World Health Organization. WHO Standard Acupuncture Point Locations in the Western Pacific Region. Manila: WHO Regional Office for the Western Pacific, 2008. (Location.)
  • Focks C, ed. Atlas of Acupuncture. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone Elsevier, 2008. (Locating method and actions.)

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