Thigh and Groin Points Flashcards
Bl 36: CHENGFU Receiving Support
Find the crease between her buttock and her thigh – the gluteal fold. The point is at the mid-point of this crease, or the mid-point of the posterior surface of her thigh, directly below Bl 54.
To find the mid-point, either trace up the line that lies between the bellies of her biceps femoris muscle, or trace a line down from
Bl 54.
(Bl 54 is approximately 3 cun lateral to the mid-line, in line with Bl 53, or the Outer Bladder Line, on a level with the 4th sacral foramen.)
Bl 37: YINMEN Thigh Gate
This point is on an imaginary line connecting Bl 36 – Bl 40, whose length is 14 cun. The point lies at 8 cun superior to the popliteal crease (or 6 cun below Bl 36) on the mid-line of the back of the thigh, between the biceps femoris and the semitendinosus muscles.
Bl 38: FUXI Superficial Cleft
Find the lateral end of the popliteal crease, and the large tendon of the biceps muscle of the thigh (biceps femoris). This point lies 1 cun superior to the popliteal crease, just medial to the tendon.
Bl 39: WEIYANG Crooked Yang
Find the lateral end of the popliteal crease, and the large tendon of the biceps muscle of the thigh (biceps femoris). This point lies just medial to the tendon, on the crease.
It is roughly 1 cun lateral to Bl 40.
St 32: FUTU Prostrate Hare
8 cun superior to the flexure of the knee.
With the patient lying with her foot pointing up towards the ceiling, imagine a line from the most lateral edge of the anterior superior iliac spine (the top of the hip bone at the side of the person’s waist) to the superior, lateral corner of the patella towards the lateral edge of the (rectus femoris) muscle. The point lies on this line, at 8 cun above the flexure of the knee, (or about 6 cun above the superior- lateral corner of the patella) towards the lateral edge of the rectus femoris muscle. A helpful method is to find St 31 at 14 cun superior to the flexure of the knee (the level of the perineum). Halve the distance from the knee to St 31 to find 7 cun, then move up 1 cun to find St 32 at 8 cun in the seam of the muscle You may also find it useful to highlight the muscles by asking your patient to raise their leg against the resistance of your hand whilst you feel for the point with your other hand as the muscle relaxes. If you press down when you have your finger on the point you should find that you are on the anterio-lateral edge of the femur.
In order to palpate the hollow of the point it is helpful first to relax the muscles of the person’s leg. Sit on the edge of the treatment table next to the person’s foot and then lift up her leg by the ankle to about 6” – 9” above the table. Now shake her leg to get the muscles of her thigh to relax. As the underlying tissue smoothes out you can run the index finger of your other hand from her knee up your imaginary line to 8 cun and feel for a dip in the underlying musculature. Put her leg down again and then feel for the hollow of the point.
St 35: DUBI Calf Nose
Find this point with the patient’s knee slightly flexed. Place a pillow under her knees in order to support them. The point is in the large hollow at the inferio- lateral corner of the patella (the ‘eye’ of the knee), just lateral to the patellar ligament, and between the patella and the tibia.
Sp 10: XUEHAI Sea of Blood
4 cun superior to the flexure of the knee.
The point lies in the middle of the medial side of the quadriceps femoris muscle (the vastus medialis). Identify this muscle by asking the patient to pull her knee backwards, flattening her leg down against the treatment table. The muscle will form a large bulge. The point lies in the centre or at the height of this large bulge.
Once you can easily visualise the approximate position of this point in the mound of muscle, there is a rough guide to help you go straight to it (providing that you and the patient are about the same size). Put your hand on the patient’s knee with the middle of your palm covering the body of her patella (L hand, R knee and vice versa). Lay your fingers down on her knee in an extended but relaxed and slightly spread position. Allow your fingers to swing to the lateral side of her patella. Let your thumb be at an angle of about 45 degrees to your index finger. The tip of your thumb will now touch the area of the point. Palpate the area to find its exact location.
The point is often found directly above Sp 9 and to help you locate the channel in this area, feel for the channel following through proximally from Sp 9.
