35
Indications
8
Protocols
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Location
3 thumb widths lateral to the du mai at the level of the lower border of the spinous process of the 3rd thoracic vertebra on the spinal border of the scapula.
Cautions
Avoid deep perpendicular needling due to risk of pneumothorax.
Indications
Conditions for which BL42 is listed as indicated. An indication list is a reference index, not a prescription – see the protocols below for sourced treatments.
AgitationAsthmaAtrophy LungAversion ColdCommon ColdCoughCough TaxationShortness of BreathEnteritisFever FullnessGhost Syndrome Three Corpse PossessionHeatHemiplegiaHigh Blood PressureStiff NeckImmobility NeckFoot NumbnessHand NumbnessPainBack PainLower Back PainChest PainHeadacheShoulder Blade PainShoulder PainStomach AcheChannel StagnationOrgans Phase StagnationDeficiency Taxation SyndromeDeficiency-taxation SyndromeTuberculosis PulmonaryLoss of ConsciousnessVomitingWind Organs Phase
TCM actions
What classical sources say BL42 does in the terms of Chinese medicine theory. These describe the point, not a condition.
Benefit Tonify LungNourish LungTonify Lung
Protocols using BL42
- Stiffness Neck, Stiffness Shoulder, Neck Chronic Pain – SI14, BL10, BL42, GB21 (doi:10.3390/medicina59122141 ↗)
- Fatigue, Anxiety, Insomnia, Cognitive Impairment, Depression Major, Mood Dysphoric – LI04, ST08, SP06, BL13, BL17, BL19, BL42, BL46, BL48, KD01, LV03, CV06, CV12, CV15, GV20, XH03 (doi:10.3389/fmed.2022.761419 ↗)
- Depression, Acute Depressive Disorder – BL13, BL17, BL19, BL42, BL46, BL48, KD01 (doi:10.2147/NDT.S601078 ↗)
- Neck Pain, Stiffness Neck, Stiffness Shoulder, Neck Chronic Pain – SI14, BL10, BL42, GB21 (doi:10.3390/medicina59122141 ↗)
- Anxiety, Sleep Disorder, Depression Subthreshold – BL13, BL17, BL18, BL19, BL42, BL46, BL47, BL48, CV11, CV12 (doi:10.13703/j.0255-2930.20250609-0004 ↗)
- Sadness – LU07, BL13, BL42, CV17 (Deadman, Al-Khafaji & Baker, A Manual of Acupuncture – point group actions)
- Lung Qi Deficiency, Lung Qi Deficiency – LU01, LU02, LU09, LI20, ST14, ST15, ST36, SI11, BL13, BL42, XB02T6 (Yang Yong-Xuan, clinical point-selection notes)
- Somnambulism – HT07, BL42, BL47, LV03 (Zhang Dengbu. Acupuncture Cases from China: A Digest of Difficult and Complicated Case Histories. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone, 1994)
Most often selected alongside BL42
How many sourced protocols in the index pair each point with BL42. Corpus frequency, not a combination to use.
- BL13Lung Shu Point5 protocols
- BL17Diaphragm Shu Point3 protocols
- BL19Gallbladder Shu Point3 protocols
- BL46Diaphragm Gate3 protocols
- BL48Yang Headrope3 protocols
- BL10Celestial Pillar2 protocols
- BL47Ethereal Soul Gate2 protocols
- CV12Stomach Centre2 protocols
- GB21Shoulder Well2 protocols
- KD01Bubbling Spring2 protocols
- LV03Great Surge2 protocols
- SI14Outer Shoulder Point2 protocols