TCM Acupuncture Theory - Entry Exit Points
Traditional Chinese Medicine utilizes a number of theories which group acupuncture points together based on their functions and/or other relationships. Many of these theories are important in a clinical setting and are used, along with other theory and diagnostic information, to decide which acupuncture points will be used for a given condition.
Below you find information regarding the entry and exit points. See our Acupuncture Point Categories section for a complete list of point categories.
For complete information about a single point, click on it within the chart.
Entry Exit Points Theory and Applications
- Not all of the entry exit points are the first and the last points on a meridian. The exceptions are LU 7, LI 4, ST 42, KD 22, PC 8, TH 22 and GB 41.
- The entry exit points do not have a strong theoretical usage in modern clinical practice, however, they may be considered if you want to allow a relative excess or deficiency in one meridian to be offset by it's yin yang paired meridian. For example, if you want to drain excess from the LU and have it flow into a deficient LI you could needle LU 7 and LI 4.
- The Entry Exit points are used extensively in Five Element (Worsley) Style Acupuncture. Our article on Classical Five Element Acupuncture discusses the clinical usage of the entry/exit points.
Entry Exit Points Chart
The entry/exit points that are not the first or the last points on the meridian are marked with an "*" and with the first or last point within parentheses. The entry/exit points are also in red on the meridian flow diagram following the chart.
|
Entry |
Exit |
|
| LU | LU 1 | LU 7 *(LU 11) |
| LI | LI 4 *(LI 1) | LI 20 |
| PC | PC 1 | PC 8 *(PC 9) |
| TH | TH 1 | TH 22 *(TH 23) |
| HT | HT 1 | HT 9 |
| SI | SI 1 | SI 19 |
| SP | SP 1 | SP 21 |
| ST | ST 1 | ST 42 *(ST 45) |
| LV | LV 1 | LV 14 |
| GB | GB 1 | GB 41 *(GB 44) |
| KD | KD 1 | KD 22 *(KD 27) |
| UB | UB 1 | UB 67 |
The following chart shows the meridian flow, activity times and entry/exit points.
