腕骨 (Wàngǔ) — Wrist Bone
Small Intestine channel · point 4
Traditionally used for
- Headaches
- Ears & hearing
- Colds & fever
- Pain & joints
- Liver & jaundice
Location
On the ulnar side of the hand, in the depression between the base of the fifth metacarpal and the triquetral bone, at the border between red and white flesh.
How to locate: Slide a finger proximally along the shaft of the fifth metacarpal on the ulnar border of the hand; after it rides over the curved base of the bone it drops into the cleft between the metacarpal and the triquetrum, at the red-white border.
Distances are in cun, a proportional unit — how to measure.
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.
Needling
Cited needling
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Perpendicular insertionDepth 0.3–0.5 cunskindeeper
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 (1)
- Deadman P, Al-Khafaji M, Baker K. A Manual of Acupuncture. Hove: Journal of Chinese Medicine Publications; 1998 — p. 235 Supports: techniques (names this point)
Site notes · not cited
Functions
- Clears damp-heat and reduces jaundice
- Activates the channel and benefits the wrist
- Clears pathogenic factors from the Taiyang channel and heat from the head
Indications
Balance Method partners
Under Dr. Tan's six systems, SI4 at the hand balances these channels at the regions its segment images.
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1. Same Chinese nameBladder channelFoot · Mirror (arm ↔ leg)Head & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Bladder channel →
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2. Branching (Bie Jing / Zang Fu Bie Tong)Spleen channelFoot · Mirror (arm ↔ leg)Head & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Spleen channel →
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3. Interior–exterior pairHeart channelHand · Same segment, opposite sideHead & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Heart channel →
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4. Chinese clock oppositeLiver channelFoot · Mirror (arm ↔ leg)Head & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Liver channel →
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5. Chinese clock neighbourBladder channelFoot · Mirror (arm ↔ leg)Head & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Bladder channel →
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6. Same channelSmall Intestine channelHand · Same segment, opposite sideHead & face, Crown & occiput, Ear · Image, head at the hand/footSolve for the Small Intestine channel →
Classical calendar method · 子午流注
When the tables open SI4
The hours Zi Wu Liu Zhu names this point at, by method. Times are the double-hour's start in UTC.
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庚子 23:00–01:00 Na Jia Fa, 丙-day sequence · Yuan-Source (原), returning to the source
「本原腕骨可祛黃」
Next: Mon 19 Oct, 23:00
A classical reference, not a recommendation: the tables say when the method opens this point, not that it is the point to needle. Open points by the hour →
Clinical Notes
Similar Points
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.)
📝 Notes
Public notes from the community and your own private notes on SI4 Wangu.
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